


Music and Movies

by 1roxsilvery8



Category: Crimson Peak (2015), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tom Hiddleston - Fandom
Genre: Accidental Marriage, F/M, Fake Marriage, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Marriage Contracts, Past Rape/Non-con, Pregnancy, Romance, Slow Romance, Tom is a bit of an asshole, Unplanned Pregnancy, but so is his new wife
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-05
Updated: 2016-10-08
Packaged: 2018-05-11 20:32:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 25,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5640973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1roxsilvery8/pseuds/1roxsilvery8
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Annie thought her life is complete. Until she comes back in London after two weeks spent in Japan promoting new album and finds her fiancée in bed with another woman. Heartbroken, she has to continue with her life, facing the cameras. Two weeks later, while doing a small radio tour in the States, trying to finally break into the American music market, Annie goes into a club in Las Vegas alone, gets drunk and ends up married with a famous British movie star. But the next morning, after causing a storm in the press, they realize that a divorce isn’t the answer to their problem. Tom seems to believe that Annie is nothing more than a spoiled talentless little diva, while Annie starts to believe that Tom is only an arrogant asshole. Will they manage to stay together for the sake of their careers or everything will fall apart?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello. This isn't my first attempt at writing, but I'm definitely trying to keep this one going cause I actually like the idea. I've had another little beginning that I deleted because I had no idea how to continue it. Hopefully this one will be easier. The updates may come a little slower because English is not my first language and sometimes I struggle with finding the right words but I'm giving my best. I hope you like it and feedback is always welcomed.

“Tom, open the damn door!” Annie could hear the continuous pounding on the door, and frowning without opening her eyes, sunk even lower in the pillow. Who the hell would be looking for a Tom in her room?

“Annie, we know you’re both in there. The hotel’s receptionist said you came here together!” at the sound of the second voice, she finally opened her green eyes and sat like she has been hit by a lightning bolt. Looking quickly around the room – and finally realizing that it wasn’t hers – she noticed the snoring man whose arm was now resting in her lap.

Memories from the previous night came back flooding and she felt her heart in her throat. She has slept with Tom Hiddleston. _She has married Tom freaking Hiddleston._ Tom murmured something and his hand squeezed her thigh. The pounding on the door was waking him up.

“Annie, please…” she could hear Amelia’s soft voice muffled.

“Who the hell is that?” he groaned, covering his eyes with his right arm.

“Trouble… We’re in big, big trouble.”

Annie got out of the bed, dragging the sheet to cover her nude form and ran to the door, unlocking it to reveal her manager – Amelia – and a blonde, tall man whose face was red.

“What the hell were you thinking?!” the man shouted, pushing his way into the room while looking in her eyes and then heading straight to the bed. Tom had sat up already, covering his lap with a pillow. “This is fucking suicide!”

“Would you, please, shut the fuck up?!” Annie turned her eyes back to Amelia. She has never seen her this angry. Usually she would just scold her after she would act like a five year old in public. “You’re acting like a damn drama queen and pretend it’s all Annie’s fault, like she’s been holding him at gunpoint to sign his name.”

The man groaned audibly and sat down on the bed next to Tom, who was rubbing his neck. Letting out a strained breath, trying to calm down, the man – Annie realized that he had to be Tom’s manager – dropped a stack of magazines and newspapers with their faces on them on the bedside table. She could see Tom’s wide smile and her platinum blonde hair tied back with a light blue ribbon.

“Now, that we are all calm enough to talk like actual _adults_ ,” Amelia began, looking directly at Tom’s manager “we can hopefully come with a solution.”

“Can’t we just get an annulment or divorce or whatever?” asked Tom, groggily, his eyes finally meeting Annie’s. His thin lips were drawn into a straight line, an accusing look on his face.

“It was too sudden – _and too foolish_ – and it could damage both of your reputations.” said the man, rubbing his temples.

Annie felt like her heart was trying to hammer its way out of her ribcage. This was the last thing that had to happen after the whole ‘ _ex-fiancée of a former boy-band member’_ that hasn’t even sunk in yet since it happened a little more than a week before the present moment. She swallowed the lump that was forming in her throat and tried not to let the tears slip. She still cared about George and this particular drunken mistake was making it worse.

She saw Amelia approaching her from the corner of her eye and then felt her warm hand on her bare shoulder.

“I’ve got an idea, but I don’t think that the three of you will like it.” she said, turning her gaze back to Tom and his manager – Luke. “It was actually the label’s idea, not originally mine, though.”

“And that would be?” Luke interest seemed to be sparked, but Tom’s eyes darkened.

Before Amelia could speak again, Annie caught on the label’s idea. They were known for arranging promo stunts, from platonic friendships to romantic relationships between celebrities, even if the people involved weren’t big fans of each other. Apparently, good promo – _of any kind –_ attracted fame, bringing along loads of moneys for the ones in charge. The first two years of her relationship with George, the tabloids were swarming with rumors about their relationship being exclusive promo. Those rumors calmed down after George asked her to marry him, until hell broke loose two weeks ago when they broke the engagement and she kicked him out of her house.

“No, no, no!” she screamed, looking at the other three people in the room. “I’ve had enough of this shit, I don’t like it and…”

Her rant was cut short by Tom.

“Well, you could have thought about that before whoring your way into my bed for spot light!” his voice was dripping with venom, a finger pointing at her.

A small shocked gasp was heard, and Annie grabbed her own high-heeled shoe from the floor and threw it at Tom.

“You dirty, little rat!” she screamed, clutching the sheet tighter to her chest. “It was your idea! And you took advantage of my drunken state!”

For a short moment, Amelia seemed shocked. Annie was usually a calm person, never speaking while angry. Luke finally sat up from the bed and took a step forward towards Annie and Amelia.

“From her reaction, I believe it’s not a good one.” his voice was lower than a few minutes earlier when he barged into the room.

“Promo-stunt relationship. From what I know, your client has a couple of movies coming out, while my Annie just released a new album and is trying to get bigger in America.” Annie groaned, trying to speak but was shushed immediately. “They stay at least six-seven months married and then part ways as friends or arch-enemies, for all I care. Of course it will be a little weird since one week ago this time she was headlining the magazines because of her ended engagement with another pop star and the age difference between her and Tom.”

Luke sat quiet for a couple of seconds. He was the kind of man who you could see that was thinking – _and actually liking Amelia’s idea._

“No!” screamed Annie again. “I won’t have my success because of _him_!” she spat, looking at her _husband_.

Tom grinned devilish, showing his perfect white teeth.

“Oh, but think how nicely the magazines will talk about you – _sleeping your way to fame_.”

Annie felt like she was going to combust. She would lie if she said she wasn’t a fan of his films, but seeing him closely, despite his good-looks, the man seemed like a total ass. She wanted to be a singer since she could barely speak correctly and worked while continuing her studies to pay for her vocal training since her parents didn’t exactly wanted her to sing; trying to forget everything bad that happened up the way.

“You listen here, you Mister _Big-Hollywood-Actor_. How disappointed your _army_ would be to know that they overestimated the size of your penis?”

He squinted his blue eyes, clearly he had not expected her to insult his manhood, but smirked a second later.

“Well, lover, you weren’t complaining about my penis last night.”

She opened her mouth to say something, but no sound was heard, causing her to look like a fish.

“Oh, look! Their first lovers quarrel.” said Luke sarcastically. “I think we should give them time while we come up with some terms for the contract.”

With that, both Luke and Amelia left the room, the door closing behind them.

Tom sat from the bed, letting the pillow to fall on the floor beside the bed and motioned towards his manhood.

“Does little Tom look so small?” she said with a pouty smile, waiting for her reaction.

She felt blood rush into her cheeks almost immediately and averted her gaze, finally meeting his gaze after a few seconds.

“Oh, Gosh” she whispered, fanning her slightly red face with her hand. “You have the Loch Ness monster between your legs.”

His smirk didn’t disappear from his face, and she suddenly felt the urge to knock his teeth out.

“I’m gonna take a shower. And I’m also stealing your shirt.” she said with her sweetest smile. Picking up his discarded blue shirt from the floor, she finally dropped the sheet that was covering her. To hell with modesty; he saw her naked already.

“Please, don’t sing in the shower with that awfully voice of yours. I don’t want my headache to get worse.” he said, his eyes taking in her nude form that was about to enter the bathroom.

“Oh, don’t worry about that. But I suggest you start writing ‘ _married Annie Marlowe_ ’ in your resume. Maybe it’ll get you an Oscar nomination.”

The last thing she saw was his angry face while slamming the bathroom door shut. This whole adventure wasn’t going to end well. Her thoughts headed back to the events that happened two weeks ago and the shitstorm in the press. One foolish action was breaking her already broken heart.

Her life was becoming a soap-opera.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I was supposed to be studying.  
> I hope you will like this chapter and I am really sorry if there are any mistakes.

' _At least, pretend to be happily married.'_ Annie kept repeating the last sentence of the message she got from Amelia over and over again. After receiving her clothes – sent by Amelia, of course – she got out of Tom’s shirt while he was taking his turn in the shower. Currently stretched on the bed, with her head buried beneath the pillows, she was waiting for Tom – rather bored.

He was in there for over twenty minutes and was singing ‘Bear necessities’ at the top of his lungs since he got in. Breathing slowly, she finally closed her eyes, memories flooding in.

_She just hopped out of the car, relieved to be home after being on another continent for a full week. Feeling giddy, she unlocked the front door trying to be as quiet as she could. George didn’t know she was coming home a day earlier and she wanted to surprise him. It was already late when the plane landed so she didn’t call him to come at the airport to come after her. There were two more months until the wedding and excitement was bubbling in her chest. But the view that greeted her was not what she expected to see._

_The hot-red pumps left in the middle of the hallway and the beige coat hanged next to her dark blue one captured her attention immediately. They weren’t hers. Her heart started beating faster while walking silently towards the main bedroom of the house._

_The door wasn’t closed fully and she pushed it slowly to peek inside. She thought the world was falling apart around her when she saw them. Her head on his chest, his arm around her and their legs tangled together into the dark sheets made her feel sick. How could he do that to her?_

_Almost refusing to let the tears slide on her cheeks, she turned around on her heels and left her shoulder bag next to the kitchen wall. Pulling out a green bucket from under the sink, she started filling it with water, then pulling out the two ice-bags stored in the freezer. After the bucket was almost full, she ripped open the bags of ice and poured them in the water letting it sit for a bit so it would be colder. She was drumming he fingers softly on the counter staring outside._

_Of course there have been a lot of rumors about him cheating on her, different pictures with him and other girls while on tour with his band. Blurry pictures, like he was sneaking, but she never believed them, because she trusted him more than enough._

_Finally taking the bucket, she returned to the bedroom, turned on the lights and finally emptying the cold water over George and his night companion. When he met her eyes, she saw his face turning red. With anger or shame, she didn’t know. But she wouldn’t cry. Not while they were looking at her shocked. She would have plenty of time to cry when she would be alone._

_He lifted his hand in an apologetic manner._

_“Annie, I’m sorry…”_

_She glanced at him, her cold eyes barely containing her tears._

_“So am I.” she didn’t even recognized her own voice. Cold. Detached. Almost out-worldly. She slipped the engagement ring off of her finger and tossed it at him. “You have five minutes to gather your stuff and get your ass out of my house.”_

_He got out of the bed, almost falling over, grabbing her hand, pleading and apologizing._

_“George, you could either leave now, with your pride shredded and… whatever that is” she motioned towards the woman that was still sitting on the bed, “or I can take that polished baseball bat and you’ll leave with a few bruised and some broken bones.”_

_She turned her back to him._

The loud slap, followed by the stinging sensation on her backside made her scream.

“Motherfucker!” She jumped on her knees, her palm rubbing her bottom and eyes focusing on a grinning Tom. There were tears in her eyes, triggered by the dream, the image with the one she thought to be her other half and the naked woman together in her bed was dancing around in her mind.

“Are you crying?” his voice seemed to be full of concern when he saw her face. “Oh, come on. It wasn’t that hard.”

“Wasn’t that hard, my ass.” she mumbled glaring at him. She could see he was taken aback by her unshed tears. “A simple ‘wake up, miss’ would’ve sufficed.”

His annoyingly amused grin appeared on his face again.

“But you are no ‘miss’, Mrs. Hiddleston.”

“Call me that again and I’ll smack you.”

He simply laughed at her.

“Luke called. He says they are waiting in the small restaurant down the street.”

Annie ignored him and got out of the bed, straightening her clothes. She wanted to log on Twitter while he was in the shower, but it scared her. After the news about her break up with George, his fans have called her a load of derogatory names, ranging from stupid blonde to artificial whore. That part of the storm hasn’t calmed down yet when she blew up into the headlines again. And she knew it was going to be a lot harder: a week after her unexpected split from her fiancée, she was suddenly married to a well-known actor. It seemed fishy, even to her. She read a couple of articles from the magazines Luke left for them and you could see clearly in the pictures taken by the paps that they were severely drunk.

She finally followed Tom into the hallway and sat quiet in the elevator. Covering her eyes with the sunglasses, she stole a glance towards him. She was looking at his own reflection in the shiny doors of the small space, probably preparing himself. They were told that there would be paps outside the hotel, waiting for them to come out. After the parade they made the other night, there was no point in hiding.

Slightly agitated, she started spinning the wedding and engagement ring on her finger. They were absolutely stunning. The engagement ring, made of platinum with small diamonds around it and a bigger, square one in the middle, was sitting under the wedding ring, a simple platinum band, matching his.

When the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened, she started shaking and tears were forming at the corners of her eyes. She felt Tom’s hand, calmly covering her much smaller one, his fingers lacing between hers. He started walking across the hotel’s lobby, his hand squeezing comfortingly hers; his thumb drawing soothing circles on her skin.

Walking towards the front door, her heart stared racing in her chest. She knew they would ask again about George and what happened, and now about her very recent marriage. When the doors opened, it felt for a second like they were attacked. There were voices coming from everywhere, shouting, trying to get an answer.

Tom ignored them and covered his eyes with the dark sunglasses in his hand, placing the white baseball hat on Annie’s head, whispering an “ _It’s all going to be over soon.”_ in her ear. His big left hand was placed on the small of her back, half shielding her with his body. Maybe her first sober opinion on him in the morning was a bit harsh. He didn’t seem like an asshole anymore.

They walked as fast as they could and finally reached the small restaurant, and finally they got rid of the paps that followed them there. Tom held the door open for her, and when it was closed, the noise was finally over. Annie unconsciously reached out and grabbed his wrist, looking warily behind her at the closed door.

Amelia and Luke were sitting at a table in the back; Luke wearing a hoodie and looking extremely out of place, while Amelia was wearing her big-framed glasses and a summer hat.

“Hello, love birds.” Luke’s voice was cheery, a big smile on his face saying that he and Amy got to common ground.

“What do you have?” asked Tom, his voice once again cold. He sat next to Luke and Annie was sitting next to Amy, making them sit face to face. His eyes narrowed when he caught her staring at him, making her frown.

“Well, we wrote a contract that will be e-mailed to both of you to read and make changes if you have them, and then you will sign it when you both will be back to London.” Luke was looking back and forth between his client and Annie, acting like he was explaining things to a bunch of ten year-olds. “Also, we think it will be better if you will live together for the time being, and then gradually put some distance between you towards the end of the contract which will last around 15 months because just one year would be too obvious.”

“Also, there will be the intimate part of your relationship. It would be better if you are discreet. We don’t want more scandals. This one is big enough. And you have to keep it for yourselves. Don’t tell about it to anyone, including family.”

The last part was directed at Tom, since Annie wasn’t speaking to any member of her family since before becoming famous.

Tom was nodding stiffly, the air tense like everything was going to catch fire and explode anytime. They spent the next two hours speaking loosely about the terms and what exactly their relationship would be about. Annie had a tour for her second album starting at the end of November so she would be at home – _well Tom’s home_ – for another two months, while Tom was filming in London. They had the honor to actually spend time together. And apparently, Tom has made it clear that he will be nice only in public.

When they finished, Amy and Luke left first, walking calmly out of the restaurant and disappearing from the view.

“It appears that you are tied to me for the next 15 months. No more sleeping around then,  _wifey._ ”

Annie gritted her teeth and sat up from the chair trying not to scream at him. He probably had no idea how much she worked for her fame. They walked together out of the building and his hand found hers again.

Finally, she formed a nice reply for his statement about sleeping around.

“Well, _husband_ , my Pinkie never disappoints me.” she said, talking about her pink vibrator that she hasn't used in a long time.

He grinned and leaned closer to her ear while walking hand in hand.

“So you’re just gonna use toys?” his voice dropped and he licked his lips.

“Well, they’re gonna last longer than you.” Annie smiled sweetly up at his stunned face and got on her tip toes to place a small kiss on his lips, trying to act like she was completely in love with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The part in italics is Annie's dream where she remembers about was happened between George and her in the night when they broke up.  
> Also, it will be explained in future chapters what happened between Annie and her family.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. I really hope you like this one. It seems a little cheesy, but I kinda need it to be like this in order to move on with the plot.

Looking around her house one last time, Annie sighed and rubbed her temples. Almost everything she owned was packed into large boxes that were being loaded into the hired truck. Standing in the hallway, she suddenly felt lost. She has lived in the house for the last four years. When she and George decided to live together, she came with the idea of him moving into her house simply because it was located in a neighbourhood quieter than the one he was living in.

And they have been happy in it for almost two years. Kicking him out in the middle of the night was the hardest thing she has done ever since she ran away from her parent’s home. Covering her eyes, she tried to keep the tears at bay.

She was barely eighteen when she left. She was contacted by her current label after she kept e-mailing them videos of her singing, but when she told her parents they didn’t react how she expected them to. They never wanted her to perform on stage, saying that it’s too much of a risk. And they were right, but she could still remember how she kept the money that she was supposed to spend to pay for her vocal training without telling them what exactly she was doing with the money.

Her mother refused to talk to her for almost a year, and when everything seemed to be settled, she fell in love with George. It was after her second single debuted. Patricia, her mother, didn’t like him and kept saying that he would somehow hurt her, but she wouldn’t listen. However, her parents kept civil towards her then boyfriend.

But the day she told them he asked her to marry him, they cut off contact again. And she didn’t try to contact them either. She chose George over her family. Annie remembered her mother yelling in the phone that at only twenty-two she wasn’t ready for marriage.

And ironically, she was standing in the middle of her house two years later, ready to move in with her husband, who wasn’t George and whom she personally knew for just eight days. Funny to think at what a drunken night and an ex-fiancée could bring along.

“Are you ready?” she heard Tom ask her, taking one of the last boxes from the living room and walking past her in the hallway.

She nodded her agreement and picked up the small box next to the wall, following Tom down the hall. He had come to help her finish faster knowing that their marriage was still fresh and paps would still be lurking after them.

The last seven days were hell, the interviews constantly having questions about the whole situation, her freshly broken heart still bleeding, making her feel like she is being stabbed in the back again and again and then someone would just pour salt on the wound. Her only distraction was Tom, who finally learned that she wasn’t just a pop-princess that would sleep around for fame. He was still annoying as hell, but they could finally eat together without one of them stomping angrily away from the table. And it was his idea to just move her belongings into his house for the duration of their contract, but not to sell the house.

Also, the man truly deserved an Oscar for how perfect he would act as a loving husband. Her radio tour was cut short, and came back in England a week earlier – _to spend her honeymoon with her husband_ and lay low until her tour.

***

She was putting her clothes in Tom’s spare bedroom. He was pacing around his very own, talking over the phone with his mother, who was rather angry at him for marrying someone so suddenly. She knew she would meet his mother sooner or later and the thought alone was scaring her. His mother – Diana – along with his entire family weren’t supposed to know that their marriage was only a contract.

“Mum, if you please just…” his voice was muffled, calmly trying to explain something to his mother. Sometimes she missed hers, but after the engagement fiasco, maybe now wasn’t the time to go for a visit.

E first, she tried staying away from social media, making no comments about any dirty article that was making her look like a fame-whore. She could handle almost everything, and ignoring the degrading insults that were coming from George’s fans - and now undoubtedly from some of Tom’s fans as well – was easy. But she drew the line at the magazines and people that were valuing her private life more than her music. She didn’t understand why someone’s personal life and actions that were concerning only the person who did it were left open for the public to judge.

“Mum wants us to go over for dinner Friday evening.” Tom’s voice brought her back from her daydreaming.

“Ok.” Her voice was quieter than usual, and in the last three day she barely had a proper conversation with anyone, only speaking when spoken to. Images with George and the other woman constantly popping in her mind reminding her of how hurt she really was.

“Are you ok, Annie?” his voice was softer as he kneeled on the floor beside her. She lifted her eyes surprised. This was the first time when he addressed her by her name.

“Yeah. Everything’s fine. Just tired.”

They weren’t the best of friend yet and honestly in the short amount of time they knew each other there were time when she would annoy her till the point where she would feel like knocking his teeth out. And there were time when he probably wanted to shave her head. But they were tied.

“Why do even bother trying to lie? Your face gives you away immediately.” He touched the side of her hear with his hand, and Annie finally leaned into his touch, her tears starting to slide down on her cheeks.

“When I called him… Six hour before arriving home… He said he loves me.” Her voice was broken and small sobs were escaping her mouth. “W-w-while ho-holding h-h-her.”

She still loved him, despite what he did. Tom wrapped his arms around her, drawing her to his chest, her tears staining his shirt. He started rocking her from side to side while stroking softly her hair.

“He’s just a fool.”

He hummed lightly until she finally stopped crying. She sniffed and disentangled herself from his hug, whipping her face with the back of her hands.

“Sorry.” She mumbled, avoiding his eyes.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for.” He was smiling softly. “Listen, I know I acted like a prick and called you quite some things. And I’m really, really sorry. So, as a peace offering, what do you think about lunch? I’ll go make something and you go take a quick shower.”

Annie nodded slowly, and Tom got to his feet pulling her up with him. After finally making it in the music industry, she didn’t had friends that close. She had Amelia, and of course she knew a lot of people. But none of them – except Amelia – were that close.

Now she could find a friend in Tom.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry about the delay, but life after two weeks off kinda catches up with you. I hope I will be able to post at least once a week from now on.  
> Also, I apologize if there are any mistakes in this.

Sighing, Annie simply kicked her shoes off and walked slowly down the hall toward her room. She has been out almost the entire day, planning the tour and talking about the choreography. She could hear Tom faintly, speaking on the phone with someone, but she didn’t linger in the hallway and entered her bedroom, closing the door behind her.

After hours of arguing with Marcus about the dance style, and receiving calls from her ex, she just needed a hot shower and sleep. Dropping her bag on the floor, Annie started undoing the buttons of her black shirt, turning slightly when she heard the knock on the door.

“Hello.” Tom said, opening the door before she even said something. He also looked tired and from what she knew, he had been going through a couple of scripts.

“Hi.” She answered, managing a small smile. Her shirt was hanging open, revealing her black lace bra and for a few moments she saw his eyes linger on her cleavage. There was a time when she would scold him it, but as tired as she was, she honestly couldn’t care less.

“So… My mum called again.” His eyes were soft, almost pleading. “She keeps asking when we are going over for a visit. She wants to meet you.”

“Have you told her about our… situation?” she cocked her head to the side, narrowing her eyes and watching him suspiciously.

“Are you daft?” there was a little bit of annoyance laced through his words. “If I would tell her, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

Annie smiled sweetly.

“Maybe next time you won’t convince drunk, a decade younger females to marry you out of the blue.”

He huffed, running his hand through his hair, calming himself down. She seriously wanted to say sorry, but when tired, she didn’t have a turn off switch for her mouth. They kept staring at each other for a few more seconds, until Annie’s phone started buzzing.

Frowning, she pulled it out of her back pocket and looked surprised at the screen. The familiar number flashed across the screen, without a name, but she already knew who it was.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Tom pointed at the device, a little curious.

“Nope.” She answered swiftly and threw it on the bed, crossing her hand over her chest. “Now, what were you saying about your mum?”

“Oh, yes. She asked when we could visit her. To meet her ‘new daughter’.”

Hew blue eyes sparkled slightly as a small smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. “She seems like a lovely person. What about Saturday?”

Tom’s expression mirrored hers, with a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, his thin lips drawn into a small smirk. His eyes kept falling unceremoniously down to her chest and the nod of his head was the only answer she got.

“Well, I’d like to change my clothes, so do you think you can close the door on your way out?” she said, turning around and pulling the shirt from her body, letting it fall on the floor.

The only thing that could be heard in the room were their breathing, and after a few seconds Annie heard Tom’s bare feet walking the small distance from where he was standing to her. She could feel his body behind hers, his blue orbs boring into the back of her head. He lifted his hand suddenly, gathering her platinum hair from her right shoulder and brushing it on her left, his head dropping until she could feel his hot breath on the side of her neck.

She gasped when he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her back against his body. She closed her eyes, letting the warm sensation of being this close to someone to spread into her entire body. She turned slowly in his embrace, the arm he had wrapped around her, now resting on the small of her back, while he placed his free hand on her hip, his fingers pressing into the soft skin.

Despite the actual image of perfection demanded by those who think beauty lies with you physical appearance, Annie never exactly lost weight on purpose. The only reason she got a little thinner was the continuous dancing routines she was learning and doing on stage and the constant meal skipping when she didn’t had time for eating. Otherwise, her nude body displayed a bit of fat that probably shouldn’t be there to be considered to have a supermodel-look. Not that she was complaining. At least she was healthy and she didn’t care much about how her body looked, as long as people would still be there for her music.

Her heart was hammering in her chest, almost as if it was trying to run out of her ribcage. This was the first time they were so close with no one watching them and snapping pictures. He rested his forehead on hers, his gaze never leaving hers, and slowly, he inched his lips towards hers. Annie closed her eyes, anticipating the feel of his lips upon her and she found herself grabbing his shoulders. His breath was fanning across her lips, but suddenly the spell was ruined when her phone started buzzing again.

Tom growled, turning his head towards the bed where she tossed it a few minutes earlier, to see the same number flashing on the screen.

“Ignore it.” She said, placing a palm on his cheek, trying to turn his head to hers again.

Without saying anything, he let go of her, and with one big step, he was near her bed, grabbed the buzzing phone and turned to her.

“Who’s is this and why won’t you answer?” his voice was husky and laced with a hint of annoyance.

Annie bit her bottom lip, then looked to the floor trying to get the words out.

“It’s… It’s George. He had been calling the entire day.” She whispered.

Momentarily, the buzzing stopped, but went off again seconds later. Before she could say anything, Tom already answered it.

“Hello?” he said harshly, through gritted teeth. Annie stepped closer to him, and in an instant his arm wrapped around her bare back once more, pulling her against him.

She could hear George asking why she didn’t answer and she closed her eyes.

“Well, as her _husband_ I believe I’m allowed to answer my _wife’s_ phone when she’s not around.”

Again she could hear his laugh at the two words. Hell, sometimes she would laugh at them too. Tom listened to George, letting him finish whatever he was saying. Images with George and the other woman appeared again in her mind and tears prickled at the corners of her eyes. She could feel Tom’s arm tightening around her, closing all the space that existed between their bodies.

“Listen, pretty boy,” Tom started, speaking through gritted teeth again “I’d pretty much appreciate if you would stop calling my wife. I don’t care who you are, if you don’t stop this, there will be consequences.”

He ended the call and tossed the phone back on the bed. Annie sighed, hugging his body with bot of her arms and resting her head on his chest. A small part of her mind told her she could get used to being in Tom’s arms.

Curling a finger under her chin, Tom lifted her head and pressed his lips to her forehead.

“I’m going to fix dinner, ok?” Annie smiled and nodded, and with a last squeeze, Tom left the room, leaving the door open. Annie licked her lips and sat on the edge of the bed, propping her elbows on her knees. Somehow, her ex would ruin every good moment in the exact moment when it started.

But then again, maybe this whole marriage fiasco wasn’t bad at all. Despite the merciless teasing between her and Tom, he was a good buy that she could love and maybe that contract didn’t need ending.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello.Thank you very, very much for the hits and for the kudos. I hope you like this chapter.

Standing cross-legged on the living room couch, Annie was staring at the magazine on the coffee table. A picture of George was on the front cover. The title said one simple thing: ‘George Miller also has a new sweetheart’.

She woke up that morning and went out for an early walk to clear off her mind and think about the evening when she would finally meet Tom’s mother. As if that wasn’t enough, she had to hide inside a restaurant for a few minutes in order to avoid being followed by paps and found herself cornered by a couple of her fans who asked for pictures and autographs.

She truly loved her fans, but sometimes they were worse than paps. When she finally left the building, her head was pounding, the echoes of their questions regarding her marriage still ringing in her ears. That’s when she saw the stack of magazines with her ex’s smiling face on them. She bought one with mixed emotions.

On one hand, there was relief. The media was going to focus on his relationship and forget about her ‘marriage’ and on the other hand was betrayal. He claimed he loved her, and about three weeks later he had another girlfriend. Well, honestly, who could blame him? She got married after two weeks. But then again, he was the one who cheated on her, in her own bed.

Not knowing whether to cry or laugh with relief, she jogged the small distance to Tom’s house, unlocked the door and threw the magazine on the table. She didn’t even open it, just stared at it for almost half an hour. Tom left for his usual morning run and she knew he would return soon. Somehow she couldn’t read the article alone.

Her head turned when she heard the front door opening, eyeing a sweaty Tom, entering.

“Morning.” He was breathing heavily and his blondish curls were sticking to his wet forehead.

“Hello.” She waved awkwardly, not knowing how exactly to say she wanted him to stay to read an article about her ex fiancée.

“Is that the asshole?” he asked, pointing at the magazine.

She nodded, lowering her gaze to her own hands standing in her lap.

“Have you read it yet?”

“No.” her voice was small. “I… I couldn’t read it by myself.”

He watched her for a couple of minutes, when he spoke again.

“I’m going to take a shower and be right back. We’ll read it together.”

Annie hummed her reply and watched him turning on his heels and walking up the stairs to his room. Left alone in the living room again, her thoughts flew back to the last night events. Her interaction with Tom was still making her giddy and she was wondering how far it would’ve gone if Gorge didn’t call. She could hear the shower running and Tom’s muffled voice singing.

She felt like she was torn in halves. She couldn’t deny she had no feelings left for her ex fiancée and the night she came back three weeks ago still made her angry, but now there was Tom, _her husband_. She almost started to laugh out loud when realization came.

“What’s so funny?” his voice made her throw her head back, laughing loudly.

“On my second date with George, we went to see ‘Thor’.” She managed to say between giggles. “Now I’m married with the God of Mischief.”

Tom smiled softly and sat on the couch next to her, eyeing the magazine that Annie was avoiding. After a few seconds, he grabbed it and opened it to the article, reading it out loud. After he finished reading, he heard Annie take a deep breath, her eyes closed and brows furrowed. There were brief mentions of Tom and herself.

“You know, you never told me exactly what happened between you and this George.”

Opening only her left eye, she studied his serious face. Sighing, she ran her fingers through her long hair and finally opened both eyes.

“You want to hear the whole story, eh?”

He nodded, watching her face.

“I met George right after my second single was heard on radio four years back. I was doing an interview for BBC Radio 1 and he was with his band, preparing for a Live Lounge. I wasn’t even looking where I was going, trying to find a toilet and I ran into him. He asked for my number and that’s how it started.” Annie took a deep breath before starting to speak again. “Everything went well, mum didn’t like him of course. After I basically ran away from home to become a singer, she barely forgave me and here I come with this internationally known boy introducing him as my boyfriend. She told me he’ll hurt me somehow, but I was stupid enough to not listen. When she found out he asked me to marry him, she cut me off again. Then, fast forward to four weeks ago: he finally hurt me and proved me that my mum was right from the start.”

She felt the tears at the corners of her eyes. She missed her mother, but didn’t have enough courage to call her. Surely she found out about her shotgun wedding with another know superstar merely two weeks after her engagement ended. Tom was silent, his eye still on her face.

“What about you?” she asked suddenly. “How come you were single?”

He opened his mouth to answer, but Annie started speaking again. “Please tell me you were single. I don’t want to run into a revengeful ex. Or find the two of you naked on some flat surface.”

Tom chuckled softly, his blue eyes shining.

“I didn’t exactly had time, almost always away from home. My last real relationship ended back in 2011. There were a few ladies here and there, but nothing serious. Mainly one night stands.”

Annie laughed loudly at that.

“Then here I come, the one night stand gone terribly wrong.” Leaning forward, holding her stomach and still laughing, she almost fell off the couch. Tom’s hand grabbed her upper arm, steadying her, not letting her fall face-first on the floor.

“Who said it went wrong?” he whispered, his face serious once again.

When his warm hand didn’t let go of her arm, Annie felt the heat creeping up to her cheeks. She knew they were bright red. Reaching out with his other hand, he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his thumb brushing softly along her right cheek. For a second she thought her heart was going to burst out of her chest. She could feel the heat radiating from her flushed skin while his face was inching toward hers.

She nearly whimpered when his thin lips finally touched hers. The hand on her arm started moving up and down, then going around her body and pulling her into his lap, with her knees on each side of his thighs and his arms securely around her waist.

She brought her hand up, cupping his cheeks and moving her lips over his. The kiss was soft, but made her feel alive. When they finally separated, both of them were breathing heavily. His fingers combed through her hair slowly, his gaze never leaving hers.

“Maybe this one night stand went perfectly.” He whispered, kissing her softly again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There might be spelling or grammar mistakes. Sorry if you find them, but it's the middle of the night here and I'm up since six am.

The silence in the car was deafening and the tension almost palpable. Dinner with Tom’s family went fairly well until they were ready to leave and the slim brunette appeared out of nowhere and couldn’t keep her hands off _her husband._

Tom’s mother, Diana, and his older sister, Sarah, seemed to be mortified when she squealed and jumped into his arm not even allowing him to turn towards her properly. The pleasant night turned awkward in a matter of seconds. Looking at her with wide eyes, Annie felt her face getting hotter when Tom’s arms warped around her body, lifting her from the ground.

She shouldn’t feel like this. She shouldn’t be jealous. After all, they got married after getting drunk in Las Vegas. But the tender kiss they shared in the morning and all the gentle touches during dinner made her feel things.

“ _Who are you?” asked the brunette smiling and looking confused._

_Finally someone that had no idea what’s going on. Too bad Annie wanted to repeatedly hit her with something._

_“I’m Annie, his wife.” She replied smiling sweetly, basking in the sweet taste of victory while watching the surprised look on the other woman’s face._

She sighed and turned her eyes to the rings on her left hand. Tom was watching the read carefully, driving through the night traffic. Suddenly his hand sat on her thigh, squeezing lightly.

“You okay?” he asked watching her face for a second, then returning his gaze to the road without taking his hand off.

“Yes.” She replied shortly.

Tom explained her quickly who the brunette – Emilia – was. One of his oldest friend – and judging by the look in her eyes, Annie could tell she was clearly disappointed to find him married – that moved to Spain a couple of years back. Apparently she was visiting her parents and would stay in London for a few weeks.

After some more minutes of driving, Tom finally pulled into their driveway and stopped the engine. Annie promptly got out of the car and went to unlock the front door.

“Are you jealous, Luanna?” She could sense the smirk without even look at him and she growled lowly, almost cursing herself for telling him her full name that very morning.

“No.” she hissed through gritted teeth while pulling her shoes off and throwing them next to the wall. She wasn’t exactly jealous, just that for the last weeks she had Tom’s undivided attention and this night she had to share it with a person from his past that he obviously knew better. Also, Emilia was a very good looking woman, not to mention that was around Tom’s age, whereas she was ten years younger.

„Strange. I could swear you are.”

She ignored him, walking straight upstairs to her bedroom. She didn’t understand her behaviour herself. She never described herself as a possessive girlfriend or even jealous. George was spotted with many girls, but she always understood that he got a lot of attention due to his popularity. Tom was basically the same, only in a different industry. Yet here she was tugging her clothes of and sliding under her blue blanket  in her bra and lacy underwear.

She shouldn’t be feeling like that. Just because they accidentally got married and kiss that morning didn’t exactly mean that he was hers. Emilia had known him way before her.

She felt the tears gather at the corners of her eyes, so she just closed them trying to make herself fall asleep. That’s when she heard Tom opening the door to her room.

„Are you sleeping?” his voice was soft and her body froze, pretending to be asleep already. „I know you’re still awake, Luanna. You’re breathing is quicker than usual.”

When she didn’t reply, he sighed and she could hear him entering the room and closing the door behind him. „I said I’m sorry.” He mumbled as he sat on the edge of the bed, pulling his socks off.

„You have nothing to be sorry about.” She finally said, shifting on her back, the blanket covering her chest.

She could faintly see his face in the darkness of the room, but she knew he was watching her.

„I didn’t know she came back here. Last time we spoke she was leaving.”

Annie smiled softly, mentally thanking God for the lack of light. The tears were still there.

After a few more moments, Tom ran his hand through his hair, the pulled back the blanket and slid next to his wife, pullin her into his side so her head was resting on his chest. His left arm was wrapped around her back, his fingers drawing small cirles on he hip, just above her underwear. Slowly, she lifted her arm and placed it on his abdomen.

„I think we should just move into my bedroom. The bed is bigger.” He said suddenly and started to pull both himself and Annie up, making her whimper slightly.

„I don’t want to get up.” She pouted. „This one is comfier.”

Tom chuckled lightly then relaxing back on the mattres hugging her body closer. They sat in silence for what seemed like hours. Before she fell asleep, Annie lifted her head slightly to be able to look him in his eyes.

„Tom?”

He looked at her and hummed to let her know she had his attention. Annie bit her lip before started talking again.

„Can we get a cat?”

He frowned a little, then burst out laughing.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. Again, I'm really sorry if there are any mistakes. Also, there are mentions of past sexual abuse and abortion. There will be more notes at the end.

Taking a deep breath, Annie closed the toilet lid, slowly pushing herself up to look in the mirror above the sink. She was feeling sick for four days now and she was starting to think that maybe a visit to the doctor should be scheduled as soon as possible, before the tour begins. There were only 17 days left.

Realization hit her when she was closing the door and stepped into the hallway. Her monthly visitor was late. As the realization came, her heart rate went up, her heart hammering against her rib cage.

„Oh, no, no, no! No. NO!” she shouted, slamming the bathroom door behind her. „Fucking hell!” she cursed, while running down the hall towards her room.

She entered the room and stopped in front of the full-size mirror, lifting her shirt to look closely at the belly. She couldn’t be pregnant; she never skipped the pill and there was a really small chance of getting pregnant so that night in Vegas they didn’t use a condom. The seed of fear was already planted.

„Ok, Luanna,” she started talking to herself while watching her reflection in the mirror and slowly rubbing her stomach with shaky hands, „I’m just going to stop by the hospital and talk with Dr. Carter and have a blood test done.”

It wasn’t the first pregnancy scare. When she was only 16, she was attacked by two drunken men on her way back from school and her mother took her to doctor Carter for tests. Thankfully, there wasn’t a baby and at the time she was relieved. She was still a child and a child couldn’t have a child. She shivered at the memory, a pang of fear flashing through her eyes. It took many months of therapy to finally understand that she wasn’t to blame for what happened, though the fear and pain were still in the back of her head.

Then, a few years later, after George moved in with her, her period was late and not knowing what to do, she went to doctor Carter again, proving to be just another scare. Maybe this time it was the same thing.

Looking at her clock on the nightstand next to the bed, she swore under her breath and quickly changed her clothes, grabbed her purse and ran out the door. She had rehearsals in about an hour and had to run to the hospital.

***

Saying that she was scared was only covering the surface. She was terrified. Opening the big double glass doors of the hospital, Annie stepped inside after looking carefully around the street to see if there were any paps lurking around. Being spotted at a hospital after her shotgun wedding was the little flame needed to start another fire and rumors in the press, especially if it was a false alarm. She didn’t want to risk anything for the sake of her career and Tom’s.

While on break from the vocal tests, she pondered if she should call Tom or Amy or Luke, then decided to wait until the results to be sure if there was a hurricane to release.

„Doctor Carter is ready.” The nurse told her after she waited for about five minutes.

Gathering all the courage she could muster, she followed the nurse into the doctor’s office. Standing at her desk as usual, the doctor watched her entering from above her thick rimmed glasses offering her a warm smile.

„Good to see again, Annie. Take a seat.” She said, gesturing to the leather seat in front of her.

„Thank you!” Annie whispered. _Not that she was overly excited to be back in this office._

„Apparently, third time is definitely _the_ time. You are pregnant so congratulations are in order. I think you are about 5 or 6 weeks since your morning sickness started, but we need to schedule a meeting to do an ultrasound and see how things are exactly.”

Annie was watching the doctor with wide eyes, not knowing how to react. Five or six weeks was exactly when she met and married Tom.

„I don’t understand. I took the pills on time, never skipped or forgotten them. How can I...?” she started. Her voice was shaky and tears were threatening to slide down her cheeks.

„Sweetheart, I know. But there is always a 1% chance to get pregnant even if you take them. It is rare, but it happens. It’s natural and we can’t really do anything about it. I know what happened, Annie, and I know this is not exactly the time for you to have a child so you can always consider abortion, but that is entirely your choice.”

She reached her hand over her desk and gently squeezed her hands giving her a small smile. Annie nodded slowly and took the envelope with the results and putting them into her purse. Thanking Dr. Carter and saying she would talk with Tom and think about everything, she exited the office and left the hospital.

She never thought that a child would be a burden or a bad thing, but right at the moment she wasn’t sure she could actually take care of a baby. She checked the time on her phone. Tom should be home by now. But, the question was: how was she going to tell him?

At the thought she almost started crying again. Stopping herself from sobbing, she pulled her phone out again and dialled Amy’s phone number.

„Amy? I need you.”

She could hear the concern in her voice when she asked her what happened.

„A...Amy, I-I’m pregnant.”

Amy remained silent for a few moments and Annie could hear her trying to say something. „I haven’t told Tom yet. I just found out a few minutes ago.”

„ _Go home. I’ll call Luke and be there in about an hour.”_

By the time she actually reached their front door, worry almost pulled her heart out and her cheeks were dry, no more tears coming out.

Tom was lying on the living room couch reading one of his favorite books, like he always did after coming home from filming. He looked up when he heard her coming and immediately standing when he saw the dreadful look on her face.

„What happened?” he asked as she approached him. She was trembling when she sat on the couch in the spot where Tom was lying earlier. He sat down next to her, a confused and worried on his face.

Annie opened her purse and dig after the envelope and with a shaky hand, she dropped it in his lap. His brows furrowed as he grabbed and opened it. She could see his eyes getting bigger as he read the results.

Tom stood suddenly dropping the paper on the coffee table. He ran a hand through his hair and started pacing in front of the couch. Annie suddenly was too afraid to even utter one word.

„You’re pregnant.” He finally broke the silence, watching her. She slowly nodded. „And you think it’s mine?”

Suddenly her eyes grew bigger as her gaze met his.

„The doctor says I’m about 5 or 6 weeks along so of course it’s yours.” She said in an icy tone, folding her hands over her chest.

„Just wanted to make sure. Don’t need that defensive tone.” He said in an equally cold tone. All the warmth that formed between them over the course of the last weeks, disappearing in a few moments.

„Are you doubting your abilities to procreate?” Annie stood and looked him square in the eyes, anger slowly boiling under her skin.

„Well you could’ve been pregnant before you met me and realized that you needed a daddy for _his_ baby for all I know.” His words hit her like a freight train, her arms slowly falling at her side and she could see the change in his eyes when he realized what he said.

„Is that how low you think of me?” her voice broke right after she uttered them. His hands made to touch her arms when she slowly stepped around him. „Don’t touch me!” she screamed when his warm hand wrapped around her wrist stopping her.

„I’m sorry, I-I...” he seemed to be lost for words, not knowing what to say.

He sighed, then pulled her to his chest. Quiet sobs were wracking her body and tears found their way back on her cheeks.

„I’m sorry.” he murmured again, cradling her head in his right hand while his left was moving up and down her back.

„I-I talked with the d-doctor. She s-s-said it’s not too-too late for an abortion.”

She could feel his body stiffen at the mention. Slowly he walked backwards to the couch, taking her with him, then pulling her gently so she could sit on his tights, with his arms around her body and her head on his shoulder. She buried her face in the crook of his neck, nuzzling softly.

„We made this so we have to deal with the consequences. This is your choice, darling. You can have an abortion if you don’t think you’re ready or you can keep the baby. I can assure you that if you decide to have it, I will help you no matter what happens to... us.”

Annie nodded slowly, clutching the fabric of his shirt in her small hand.

„I called Amy. She said that Luke and she will be here soon.” Her voice was weak from crying.

He simply nodded and gave her a reassuring squeeze, then kissed the side of her head.

„All will be well, sweetheart.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I might be pushing a little the whole pregnancy thing, especially with the blood test results that I'm sure that you don't get that quickly. But fiction is fiction and to be honest, I was never pregnant and all I know is from my anatomy textbooks. I'm really, really sorry if I got anything wrong.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the longest chapter I have written so far. I apologize if there are any mistakes and I hope you like it.

Sighing, Annie sat edge of the bed asking herself if she has taken the right decision. After having another chat with Dr. Carter, she gave up on the abortion idea. In fact, she knew she wouldn’t be able to actually go through with it. And, luckily even the marriage was a cover up for a rash decision it was working nicely. Tom started to slowly grow on her and after finding out she was now seven weeks pregnant, he seemed to be a little bit happier.

Amy was half elated and half worried and after she learned about their decision to keep the baby, she had discussions with the label about cutting the choreography for her while keeping it for the back dancers. Annie didn’t take the news good.

After working for weeks on it and learning over fifteen different routines almost started crying when she was told she won’t dance that much. Wanting to keep it as a secret for as long as possible, they also change the outfits from the tight shirts and leather shorts to clothes that were a size or two bigger to not start another storm with the media after the first one toned down. Right now, everyone was following George and his new model-girlfriend. Annie was surprised that the more Tom grew on her, the less she would care about George and what he has done.

Right now all she cared about was the baby and the tour that was about to start. Since Tom was still filming for his current project, he couldn’t physically be there all the time so they would have to spend more time separated. While Tom would stay in London for another three weeks, the UK leg of her tour would start on the 13th of November in Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena, ending in Sheffield Arena on 23rd of December with a total of 33 concerts. Then she had a break between 24th December and 11th of January, then the tour would continue with three consecutive shows in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, another two day break, then another three consecutive shows in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya. Then on 20th, 21st and 23rd another series of shows in Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Buona Vista, the tour finally ending with a total of 42 shows and 459.000 tickets sold.

She had appointments every month between shows and thankfully the shows outside the UK were few – only nine – and she would be four months along when the shows would start, she had to fly around from Australia back to the UK for the medical appointment the fly back to Asia for the last six shows. This was one of the times she enjoyed her celebrity status and took full advantage of have her own private jet. And since Tom was free during that period of time, he would join Amy, the dancers and the live band making her little travel family complete.

Originally they planned to have a European and North American part, but then the wedding and baby happened so the second part of the tour was postponed, having it pushed back since she the things didn’t go as planned.

She was stretched on the bed, with her hands on her belly rubbing softly and humming when she heard the knocking on the front door. Frowning, she looked at the clock on the night stand next to the bed wondering who could be. It was still early and Tom wouldn’t knock since he had a key. Since they found out she was pregnant, Tom practically moved in her room, spending their nights together with her body pressed tightly to his front and his hand splayed protectively on her stomach.

Getting out with a sigh, she walked softly out of the room and down the stairs towards the door. Opening it she was greeted by the smiling image of the dark haired Emilia who was watching her surprised.

“What are you doing here?” her cold tone made Annie’s blood boil under her skin and the sudden want to hit her came back.

“I live here.” She answered, smiling as sweetly as she could muster. “Do you want to come in?”

She was after all one of Tom’s friends and she couldn’t just shut the door in her face as much as she wanted to. Emilia nodded slowly, the steely look in her eyes still there as she brushed past Annie and walked into the living room, propping herself on the leather couch like she owned the place.

“Some tea?” she asked again, trying to be a good host to her husband’s old friend.

“That would be nice.” Emilia’s voice was still cold.

Leaving the brunette in the living room, Annie took a deep breath and almost ran into the kitchen, pulling the phone from the back pocket. Once everything was ready for the tea, she dialed Tom’s number and waited for him to answer.

“ _Hello._ ” He was breathing heavily.

“Tom, I’m really, really sorry to disturb you, but how long until you come home?” her voice was barely a whisper, not wanting Emilia to hear her.

“ _About 30 minutes, love. We just wrapped for the day. Just got out of the costume.”_ She could sense from his voice that he was tired.

“Ok, good. Did you forget to mention we have company for the evening?” her eyes darted towards the kitchen door, trying to see if her guest was listening.

“ _Company?”_ he asked, puzzled.

“Yes. Emilia stopped by, a little surprised when I opened the door.” She clarified pouring the water into the mugs.

There was a brief pause from Tom’s part, his breathing a bit calmer now.

“ _Well, she called me a few times today, but I was busy.”_ He said and Annie heard a noise that she assumed was a door being closed. “ _Did she say what she wants?”_

“No. I invited her in and she sat on the couch like she owns it. Tom, should I be worried? She won’t cut my throat, right?”

Tom laughed for a few moments before answering.

“ _From what I remember she is harmless.”_

“I don’t know; she seems a bit… stiff. Like someone shoved a stick up her ass.” She whispered, watching Emilia from the doorway. She slapped her hand on her mouth when she realized what she said. “Oh God, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”

“ _Don’t worry.”_ She could tell he was laughing. “ _I’ll be home in a bit.”_

“Ok.” She said, ending the call and taking the two mugs she left on the counter and smiling as best as she could she returned to the living room. The woman didn't move an inch from where she sat when she came in and Annie could see she was tense, almost waiting for something.

“Here you go.” She said cheerily, placing the mug on the coffee table in front of her and sat crossed legged on the opposite side of the couch, facing Emilia. “So… What brings you here?” Annie asked, trying to start some form of conversation forcing another smile.

“I wanted to talk to Tom about… something.” She said, taking a sip of the tea.

“Oh, he said you called him a few times. He’s sorry he couldn’t answer, he had been busy the last few days.”

Emilia cleared her throat, placing the mug back on the coffee table and glared at Annie.

“He answered you?” she snapped in an icy tone.

Annie’s smile disappeared.

“Well, I’m his wife, he can’t really ignore me.”

“You call yourself his wife after a drunk night in Vegas?!” Emilia shouted standing up suddenly. “Don’t think for a second I didn’t read about you, you little bitch! Just two weeks before luring Tom with your charms, you were engaged with some popstar. Are you this greedy? Are money that important?”

Annie let her finish her rant and took a sip of her tea, struggling to contain her laughter. Listening to Emilia’s words made her curious about what exactly happened between Tom and the brunette, because if they were romantically involved, she clearly wasn’t over it.

“Wow” she said, looking at the older woman with a little smile. “I thought I was acting childish. Listen, I don’t know what happened between you and my _husband_ in the past, but for him it clearly remained in the past. I don’t regret the ‘drunk night in Vegas’ as you put it and neither does Tom. Also, my engagement with George is something that doesn’t matter anymore and it’s also none of your business.”

Emilia opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but Annie raised her hand silencing her.

“I’m not finished talking.” She said looking at the brunette from above the rim of the mug. “Just for information, I’m making more money in one month than Tom makes in one year. I’ve got a clothing and make-up range, nail polish and perfume that are selling nicely along my music, I also earned plenty from publicity contracts and I’ve got a pretty big tour that sold out. Even if I would give up on making more music, I could afford living comfortably for the rest of my life.”

The brunette was staring at her, not even blinking and Annie could see anger marring her beautiful features. She couldn’t deny the fact that she was a beauty, her dark locks framing her tanned face, but if looks could kill, Annie would’ve been 6 feet underground.

“You’re too young for him.” She finally said, crossing her arms over her chest, refusing to stand back on the couch.

“He’s not complaining.” Annie motioned for her to sit back down. “Tom will be back soon. Please, make yourself comfortable and try to rid of the frown. It doesn’t suit you.” She took another sip.

Emilia sat with a huff, not looking Annie in the eyes anymore. The tension in the room was palpable and Annie prayed for Tom to come quickly because if there was a thing she could do, that was awkward silence. As if the Gods were on her side, she heard the front door and Emilia sat quickly running down the hall and jumped into Tom’s arms before Annie could even stand from the couch. The blonde rolled her eyes, her hand rubbing her stomach unconsciously.

She smiled when Tom entered the living room looking shocked with Emilia walking behind him. He didn’t say anything, but slowly approached her and bend down, cupping her cheek softly and kissing her.

Annie almost screamed when he dropped something in her lap. Looking down her face was lightened up by a face-splitting grin. Standing in her lap was a small black and white kitten and she let a small scream out, cradling the little animal to her chest, wrapping one arm around Tom’s shoulders and awkwardly hugged him. He remembered about the fact that she wanted a cat.

“Thank you.” She whispered in his ear, the smile never leaving her face.

“Anything for mummy.” He whispered lowly, so the woman behind him wouldn’t hear. He knew she had a big mouth and he didn’t tell the news about the baby to his mother.

Annie looked over at Emilia, who stood next to the coffee table sipping from the tea mug looking like a kicked puppy.

“I’ll let you talk.” She said kissing Tom’s cheek. “It was nice seeing you, Emilia. Thanks for stopping by, I’d stay more, but I have an early day tomorrow and I just need a to rest. I hope you understand.”

The brunette nodded and smiled sourly, without saying a word. Annie waved awkwardly and petting the kitten she went upstairs, closed the bedroom door and started to play with her new pet smiling and cooing softly, starting laughing out loud when Emilia screamed rather loud downstairs and the poor kitten got scared.

She didn’t know how much time has passed until the door opened softly and Tom entered. She was stretched on her back, the kitty on her belly purring in content. Annie opened one eye and watched Tom stripping down to his underwear and scooted over enough for him to stretch next to her.

“I like you, Tom.” She murmured half asleep. Her feelings for Tom grew in the time they spent together and she knew deep inside that the drunken mistake they both did was the start of something. And, being honest, Annie wouldn’t have slept with him if she didn’t find him attractive.

He chuckled and kissed the side of her head.

“I like you too.” He started caressing her left cheek with the back of his hand, his lips grazing her temple. “Did you choose a name for your kitty?” he asked.

“Our kitty.” She whispered with her eyes still closed. “I was thinking about naming it Prada, because I didn’t know if it was a he or a she.”

“It’s a she.” He murmured smiling.

“It remains Prada.” She turned her head a little, rubbing her forehead on his jaw. “Is Emilia gone?”

“Of course. Why do you ask?”

“I didn’t think she would want to leave. At some point I started thinking that you would have to take her to bed.” She said.

Tom tensed slightly, remembering his conversation with Emilia who was refusing to believe that he was truly married to Annie. Indeed, everything had been fast paced, the marriage and the baby coming out of nowhere, but he would lie if he would say the thought of being a father didn’t made him happy. He almost grabbed the older woman to kick her out of the house when she started insulting Annie, but he politely invited her to leave, reminding her that it was her choice to move to Spain all those years back, leaving him behind.

“Why take her to bed when I have my beautiful pregnant wife and our cat in the bedroom waiting for me?”

He honestly didn’t had any idea of why he was whispering and for a few moments he thought that she was sleeping again, but then he saw her smiling.

“We should move in the other bedroom. The bed is bigger. And softer.” He said, wiggling a little and adjusting next to Annie. She hummed, burying her face in his neck.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello.  
> I just wanted to explain a little about the timeline. Tom and Annie meet and get married in mid September 2015. The real life timeline is a little altered. As there is a brief mention of 'Crimson Peak' I think it would've been a little weird no to mention the change in the dates. I know that the movie came out on 16th of October last year, in my story it comes out on 24th of November. There will be more alterations to the real life timeline regarding movie premieres and shootings and I will mention them when they will happen, but this is fiction after all. Also, Skull Island doesn't happen just yet. I hope you like this chapter.

“Annie? What are you doing there?” Tom’s voice was groggy and his eyes barely open. Annie turned her head to look at the man sprawled on the bed. She was standing in only her black underwear and a bra in front of the full size mirror watching carefully her tummy.

“I don’t even look pregnant.” She sighed, looking back in the mirror. She knew from Dr. Carter that she would start to show at about 12 weeks along, but in truth, she was excited and couldn’t wait until the small bump would appear.

Tom stretched, then sat on the bed, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hands. Prada was curled in a small ball on his pillow next to the bed.

“Come here.” He said smiling softly. With silent steps, she came to stand before him then ran a hand through his hair. His arms wrapped around her hips, pulling her forwards then pressed a kiss on her creamy skin. “Your mummy is a little impatient for you to grow, little one.” He whispered then, pressed his ear to her skin, hugging her tightly.

Annie snorted placing her hands on his bare shoulders. She loved mornings like this; the calmness washing over her. There were only three days until the first show of the tour when she had to leave to Cardiff. The thought was scary, but Dr. Carter assured her that the pregnancy will go smoothly if she wouldn’t push herself too much and avoid dancing too much.

“Why did you let me sleep this late?” he asked after a quick glance at the clock.

“You were tired last night.” She explained, smiling down at him. “When you’re tired, you snore like a chainsaw.” She giggled, running her right hand through his hair again.

“I don’t snore.” He mumbled, nuzzling her tummy.

“Of course you don’t.” she laughed teasingly, kissing his forehead.

“Want to go out for breakfast?” he asked, looking up at her, his smile never fading.

She nodded, then got out of his hold and pulled her clothes out of the wardrobe, pulling them on. She already took a shower before he woke up. Hugging her again with only one arm, he went out of the bedroom.  He told her that he wanted them to move into his bedroom, since that one was bigger and keep this one as the baby’s room. She agreed, even if she was half asleep. Her entire body was buzzing with excitement. She loved babies and honestly couldn’t wait to have her own child. Even though it was still early in her career and it wasn’t the best time career-wise, she was still excited and probably nothing would change that.

Waiting for Tom to get dressed, Annie checked her Twitter again. People were talking about her first show and because she stood out of radar for the last weeks, the number of magazines talking about her and Tom was small. Tom’s fans simply understood the fact that he got married, and except for that 1% that were too passionate about him, it seemed that they liked her or at least accepting her existence. 

“Ready?” Tom’s voice made her look up. She nodded and locked her phone, shoving it into her pocket.

***

Maybe saying that the day would go smoothly was a mistake. Despite keeping it low, they have been spotted and then followed by a hoard of paps when they were almost at Tom’s favorite restaurant. Thanking their lucky star, they finally entered the building and everything went back to normal, even if the dark cloud that waited outside was there.

The restaurant wasn’t full and after ordering their meals, they simply sat there waiting for the food. Smiling happily Tom held her hand over the table top, softly playing with her fingers, squeezing them from time to time.

“I almost wish I didn’t have to go.” She sighed, subtly patting her tummy with her free hand. Tom’s eyes followed her hand’s movement and bit the inside of his cheek.

“Commitments and responsibilities.” He said, his smile fading slightly. “I have declined an upcoming project.” He finally said, avoiding her gaze.

Before she could open her mouth and ask smoothing, the waiter came, placing the food in front of them.

“Why?” she finally asked, her eyes wide, shock visible in them. She knew how much he loved acting.

“If I had accepted it, I wouldn’t be here for the last few months of the pregnancy.” He said in a low tone. “And I’m not missing the birth of my first child.”

Annie didn’t say anything. This was a first time for her. George never put her before his career, and even though she knew it was mostly because she was pregnant, she was grateful for it. Suddenly, a strange emotion took over and her eyes filled with tears threatening to spill over her cheeks.

His hand quickly cupped her left cheeks, brushing his thumb over the cheekbone.

“Good tears or bad tears?” he asked, slightly worried.

“Good ones.” She assured him and nuzzled the left side of her face into his palm.

“What did Luke say?” she asked, kissing his palm softly.

“Well, I needed a break at some point. So I didn’t sign a new contract. ‘Crimson Peak’ premieres on the 24th and after that we do the promo interviews. The project I’m working on is still going and will be over right before Christmas and following that there will be some another premieres. And honestly, I haven’t had a break in quite some time. This is the perfect time.”

Annie listened while biting from the sandwich she ordered. The rest of the breakfast passed quietly while the others in the restaurant chatted away. Paying for the food, they stood from their seats and quietly made their way out. Tom opened the door for her and stepped to the side allowing her to pass.

Without looking where she was going, she walked straight into somebody else’s body. Gasping from the small impact shock, she looked up almost blurting out an apology. But the words got stuck in her throat when her wide eyes met George’s honey-brown ones.

As if this wasn’t enough, they were surrounded by photographers who were already shouting at them. Her whole body stiffened and she felt Tom’s arm wrapping around her body.

“What are you doing here?” she hissed, her surprised expression turning sour.

“Are people not allowed to have breakfast out?” George smirked, his eyes moving up from the spot where Tom’s hand sat on her hip until he met his gaze.

Annie could hear the faint clicking noise made by the paps around them. She didn’t see George since the night she found him with the other woman – the same woman who was now standing behind him. The young blonde felt her blood boil under her skin. She knew he came here on purpose, knowing that he needed some kind of scandal to stay relevant, but he wasn’t accompanied by the model he was spotted with.

She grimaced at the thought of another scandal. They have done a good job at keeping it low after the wedding, but being nose-to-nose to her ex in a public space while she was with her husband already propelled them on the front cover of the tabloids. A scene would be the cherry on top.

“Let’s go home.” She said to Tom, grabbing his hand and pulling him slowly. He was looking at George, his brows furrowed. “Tom, please.” She whispered, tugging his hand a little more.

Reluctantly, he took a step toward her as she nodded, worried that George would try and do something. She knew that he wasn’t George’s biggest fan, especially after she told him why they broke up. She heard George chuckle and she gritted her teeth and squeezed her husband’s hand harder. His thumb was drawing soothing circles on the back of her hand.

“She called me pathetic, but she whore herself to stay in the spotlight.” George said to the woman in a loud enough as Tom walked past him.

Annie didn’t exactly know how it happened. Suddenly Tom let go of her hand, turning on his heels and pushing George hard enough so he took a couple of steps back. Yelping, she stood in front of Tom, trying to block him from punching her ex who was glaring at them over his companion’s shoulder. Wrapping his arms around Annie’s body, he locked eyes again with George.

“I suggest you watch your tongue.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. A big big thank you for the kudos. Thank you, thank you thank you.

“Thank you all for coming!”

Breathing heavily, Annie waved to the crown then the stage lights went out. The three weeks of the UK tour went well so far, and honestly there wasn’t much that would go wrong.

“Good job, guys!” she shouted to everybody backstage, a big smile plastered across her soft features. The morning sickness was gone and at 11 weeks pregnant, she was starting to show a small bump. Quickly changing her clothes in the dressing room, she pulled her phone out of her hoodie’s pocket and looked at the screen. It was almost 9 pm and she had one missed call. Her eyes widened when her mother’s caller id flashed on the screen. Gulping, she looked around her to find Sam, but she was talking with a few members of the live band. Gathering all her courage, she swiped her finger across the device and answered.

“Hello?” her voice was shaky and she was expecting a full blown yell.

“ _Luanna.”_ Her mother’s voice rang into her ear, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. “ _I … I just wanted to…”_ Patricia started to say and suddenly stopped.

Annie sobbed and covered her mouth with the back of her hand. “I’m sorry, mum.” She finally said, tears sliding down her cheeks at last.

“ _No, no, no, no, sweetheart. You have nothing to apologize for.”_ Patricia’s voice was wavering signaling that she was also crying. “ _I have made a lot of mistakes, my darling girl. I shouldn’t have done that. I shouldn’t have cut you off.”_

“I should have listened to you, mum. Wh… When you told me that he would hurt me.” She whispered in the phone.

She heard her mother taking a deep breath.

“ _I’ve seen your face all over the news for so long and so many people insulting you and I… I wasn’t even there to support you. And then you got married to another man out of nowhere… What’s going on, sweetheart?”_ she was crying softly by now.

Annie took a deep breath and explained to her what happened, leaving out the contract they both signed the morning after.

“Tom’s a good guy, mum. Nothing like George and I know the wedding came out of nowhere, but everything is going well.” She said with half a smile. She heard her mother breathing regularly at the other end, listening to everything her daughter was saying.

“ _I saw those videos recorded in front of a restaurant.”_ Annie knew what videos she was talking about. For a full week all the tabloids were trying to figure out why exactly Tom pushed George. It seemed like the whole world was split in two halves, one of them saying that Tom’s reaction was one of a married man whose wife just got insulted and the other one saying that Tom was wrong by reacting like that.

“George called me something not-so-nice and Tom got angry. I don’t know what they wrote, but you know they like to twist things in whatever is going to make more money. I swear that’s what happened, mum.”

“ _I know, sweetheart. Do you think you can forgive me?”_ she whispered. Annie could sense the worry in her voice.

“Of course.” She was now smiling wide, her right hand combing through her long hair. A happy giggle escaped her lips.

“We have to go, Annie!” she heard Sam calling.

“Give me a moment. Mum, I’m sorry, I have to go. Just finished a show and I have a free day tomorrow…”

“ _Do you think you could come to lunch? You can also bring Tom so we can meet.”_

“Yes, I’ll talk to him. Bye, mum. Thank you for calling.”

She ended the call and turned on her heels towards Sam, who was waiting impatiently. A free day was also a free day for Sam and her sister recently had a baby that Sam didn’t met yet.

“My mum called. Wants to see Tom and I tomorrow.” She said linking arm with her manager while slowly following the security person.

“That’s good news. How did she take the entire scandal?”

“Better than I thought she would. I was worried she’ll never talk to me again.”

Sam nodded and touched the small bump that was growing.

“Have you told her about the pregnancy?”

Annie sighed and looked for a second at the ground.

“I kind of let it out of the conversation, as well as the contract.”

Lately it was hard to think that they had signed a contract to remain married for some time. They were married for almost three months and everything was going smoothly. The scandal caused by the meeting with George has subdued and it seemed that the world wasn’t finding their story interesting enough to stay on the front pages longer. They would more likely write some more when the baby bump will grow and it will be visible under her clothes. But for now, everything was fine.

***

Standing on the steps of the house, she fumbled with the keys, trying to find the right one. The lack of light was making her slightly angry and she was cursing her eye sight through gritted teeth. A fast flashback about the night after Japan went through her mind. Whatever would happen, that night will always haunt her. Her heart started racing in the moment she unlocked the door.

Stepping inside quietly, she shrugged off her coat, hanging it on the coat rack and placed the bag next to the wall, as well as her shoes. She knew that Tom wouldn’t do that to her, but the doubt was still in the back of her head.

Taking a deep breath, she went upstairs. Tom finally convinced her to move in his bigger bedroom and turn the guest room into a nursery. They decided to wait until after Christmas to order the furniture.

The bedroom door was slightly open and trying not to bump into the wall, she opened it and stepped inside. Tom was stretched across the bed, still wearing the day’s clothes and snoring lightly, Prada curled up next to his head. Annie smiled at the sight.

“Tom? Tom, wake up.” She touched his shoulder and his blue eyes opened, looking at her sleepily.

“Hello.” He rasped with a smile of his own. There were times when his eyes and smile would take her breath away. “I wanted to wait for you, but I fell on duty.”

“No worries, sweetheart. Come on. You have to change.”

He nodded and lifted himself from the bed. Annie opened the wardrobe and took out the usual sweatpants and shirt she was wearing to sleep, as well as Tom’s night pants. After they both changed, his arms wrapped around her waist with his hands on her belly, pulling her back against his chest, burrowing his face in the soft skin of her neck.

“I missed you.” He stated simply kissing her neck. Annie smiled and put her hand on top of his.

“I missed you, too.”

And she did miss him. Before the tour, even if he was filming almost every day he was every night there so they naturally were together more. Now she was traveling all over the country, doing concerts so she couldn’t be home every night and he couldn’t come with her since he had his own projects to finish. But instead of pulling them apart, the distance was making their bond stronger. It was as if they have been married for years.

He turned her around and they both stretched on the bed, pulling each other close. Annie threw her leg over his hip, while his arms crushed her against him.

“I talked to my mum earlier.” She whispered, her face buried into his neck. He smelled of his peppermint body wash, which was calming her.

“And?” he pressed, his palm rubbing soothing circles on her back, then slowly move on the leg wrapped around him, stroking from her hip to the knee.

“She wants to meet you. Are you free tomorrow?” her eyes were closed, Tom’s caress was making her even sleepier and the tiredness of the last show was showing.

Tom nodded lightly, then kissed her forehead. He felt her smiling against the skin of his neck and gently lifted her head to drop a loving kiss on her lips.

“Sleep.” He murmured.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was supposed to finish my chemistry assignment by meh...   
> Hope you like it. :)

“Tom? Tom, wake up! I’m hungry!” Annie whined, shaking Tom awake. He mumbled something and opened his eyes to look at the clock on the nightstand. It was 6.37 am.

“What do you want?” he asked gently snaking his hand under her shirt and dragging it up and down her spine. She shivered and snuggled closer, placing her hand on his bare chest.

“Toast and raspberry jam.” She mumbled lowly. “Do we still have raspberry jam?”

Tom nodded and kissed her forehead. Rubbing his eyes again, he got out from under the blanket and slowly padded out of the room and down the stairs. Annie sighed and turned on her back, her eyes fixed on the ceiling. She was silently thanking God she found Tom in her drunken haze and not somebody else. At least he took care of her and her needs when they were both at home.

Suddenly she was filled with guilt and felt bad that she woke him up for something she could have done herself. Despite the fact that she lived alone for at least six years, she was a disaster in the kitchen and she only knew how to cook basic stuff so she wouldn’t starve when she didn’t want to eat out or order something.

Sighing again, she got out of the comfort of the bed and walked towards the kitchen rubbing her eyes with her hands. The light was turned on downstairs and she stood in the kitchen’s doorway, looking silently at Tom’s back who was spreading the jam over a few pieces of toasted bread. He didn’t seem to notice her behind him.

Slowly, she walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, burrowing her face in his back.

“I’m sorry I woke you up this early.” She mumbled, her voice muffled by his skin.

He placed one hand over hers where they met on his stomach and squeezed lightly.

“Don’t worry. Why are you out of bed?” he asked, his voice still thick with sleep. She didn’t reply, instead she choose to shrug her shoulders and nuzzle the skin of his back, with half of a smile on her face. “Your toast is ready.” He said, turning slowly in her arms, placing his own around her body.

“Thank you.” She said softly and rose on her tip-toes to press her lips on his. He kissed her back and walked her backwards to the table, gently sitting her on one of the stools and then placed the place filled with toast in front of her.

“I’m going to wash my face and then go on my morning run, ok?” he said, kissing her again, her lips tasting of raspberry. She nodded and watched him leaving the room. She ate in silence, her gaze focused on the window. The sky was gray and she was sure it would rain later on.

Then she remembered the promise she made to her mother the night before. She’ll have to also tell her about the pregnancy before the paps will figure it out and her face will be making the headline again. Tom’s mum was elated when they told her, as well as Tom’s younger sister, Emma, who she met two days before the tour started. Diana promised to visit her when would return to London for the concert and Annie promised to take her, Emma and Sarah backstage at the Wembley show.

“I’m leaving.” She heard Tom say. “If you want to go back to sleep, please don’t curl up on the couch again.”

Annie nodded while chewing and Tom kissed the side of her head. She watched him close the entrance door after him and sighed, taking another bite. He hated when she would curl up on the couch – and even if she hated to admit he was right about it – it was bad for her back.

She smiled when Prada came into the kitchen purring and rubbing her soft fur on her legs.

“Are you hungry, darling?” she cooed, standing from her seat and opened the cabinet where they kept the cat’s food. As the cat started eating, she returned to her own early meal. She didn’t usually eats this early – and to be honest, she almost never woke up earlier than nine on her days off – so this was a rare time.

She was absentmindedly rubbing her small bump as thoughts about the future were flying around her head and wondering what would her mother’s reaction would be. It was quite the surprise – after they haven’t spoke for two years she would go up at her door married and pregnant.

She sighed again and stood again from her seat, walked to the sink and washed her plate. She smiled at the kitten which was still eating and went into the living room. Stretching down on the couch, she opened the T.V. and, slowly, she was claimed again by sleep.

When Tom came from his run an hour later, he found her sleeping soundly on the couch. He smiled at the sight and went quickly upstairs to take a shower and change his clothes. He was still a little worried about meeting Patricia – even more so after Annie told him why she stopped talking to her own daughter. And he cared for his pregnant wife more and more every day, despite his first sober impression of her. The “morning after” memory came back, bringing a smile on his face. Even if it was rash, he wasn’t sorry about it now and he doubted that he would ever regret it.

They both knew that their unborn child would bring a whole new chapter in their lives, especially since both their careers were still fresh, but he was ready to sacrifice everything for his little family. And his instincts were telling him Annie would do the same in a heartbeat.

Quickly finishing his shower, he got dressed and came back in the living room to find Annie unmoved on the couch.

“Scoot over, love.” He said and watched as she wiggled herself further into the backrest. He smiled lovingly at her and stretched next to her. Her head quickly found its way on his chest, one hand gripped his T-shirt’s fabric and she swung one leg over both his legs. 

***

He gripped her hand as he stopped the car in her parent’s drive way. She could hear her own heartbeat and wondered if he could feel her pulse.

“It will be fine.” He whispered and kissed the back of her hand, smiling reassuringly. She gulped and nodded, her eyes still wide with worries. She waited for this moment since her mother told her she wasn’t welcomed back after she made her choice. Taking a deep breath, she opened the passenger’s door at the same time as Tom opened the door on his side. He walked around the car, holding a big rose bouquet.

Annie took another deep breath and knocked at the door three times. She blinked when she finally heard the door being unlocked and her mother’s face came into view.

“Darling…” she breathed and hugging her daughter tightly, squeezing her eyes shut.

Tom saw Annie’s shoulders shake and realized he started crying. Over the women heads he saw Annie's father coming towards the entrance, his eyes filling with tears as well when he saw his daughter.

When her mother finally let go of her, it was her father’s turn to hug her, while Patricia turned to Tom.

“These are for you.” He said, extending the roses to his mother-in-law. “I’m Tom.” He smiled, hoping for the best.

Tom saw Patricia’s face light up when she took the flowers and hugged him. She ushered them both inside, closing the door behind.

After the introductions and pleasantries, he watched his wife’s face shining with joy and felt her hand squeezing his. He knew she was anticipating the moment she would tell them about the pregnancy.

They have spoken about it before they left and they both agreed it was now or never. Since Annie was almost halfway through the UK part of the tour and there were only two shows left in London, she wouldn’t be home until December 24th when she would be should more prominently. And she didn’t want her mother finding about the pregnancy in the same way the entire world found out about the wedding.

“Mum…” Annie started and quickly looked at Tom, who squeezed her hand back. “There is something I need to tell you.”

Her mother’s face lighted up with a smile even bigger.

“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?” Annie felt like she was hit in the head and she saw her father looking at Patricia then at her belly. Tom was displaying the same stunned expression.

“How… How did you know?” Annie asked, her hand automatically flying to her stomach, placing it over her growing bump.

“You kept touching your belly since you came in. I was wondering if you were going to tell us.”

“It is part of the reason we wanted to talk to you in person.” Annie whispered and looked at Tom. “We didn’t want you to find out about another magazine. It’s bound to happen when the baby bump will be bigger.”

“Oh, darling, you have no idea how happy I am for you, truly. You seem happier than I ever saw you.” Patricia stood from her spot and got closer to her daughter and grabbed her hand. “Both your father and I know that we weren’t quite the most understanding parents there could be and we are truly sorry for that. But I can promise you this: from this moment on, you – both of you – have our support.”

Annie hugged her mother again, then sniffled and wiped the tears from her cheeks with the back of her right hand.

“I just have one question, if you don’t mind. It’s been nagging at the back of my head since I realized you are with child.” Her mother said, looking between her daughter and Tom.

After both of them nodded, she seemed to look for the right words.

“Is this child the reason you got married this sudden?”

Tom cleared his throat and answered the question.

“Actually, despite everything the media claimed, no. We found out about the pregnancy after a month and a half.”

He watched his mother-in-law hugging Annie again and he suddenly felt like everything was in one piece.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. I'm really sorry for the gaps between chapters, but I barely even have time for anything these days and I feel like I own an explanation. I have a really important exam coming in July and even there are about three more months left, I know that it's better to start early. So I've been revising the nervous system for the past week and barely had time to write. This week I'm turning to chemistry and go over the fats and oils so I can finally dive into the mono- and polysaccharides so the next chapter might come a little late also.   
> At the end of this chapter there is a little talk about past sexual abuse; nothing too graphic, but it's there.

Sighing happily, Annie was walking slowly next to Tom. Despite being the end of December and a day before Christmas, the weather was extremely nice and she was a little upset about the lack of snow. After they decorated the tree and placed under it the envelope in which Dr. Carter placed a paper with the gender of the baby, they decided to go out for a stroll to avoid being tempted to open it before Christmas morning.

Tom was holding her hand tightly their fingers intertwined and was watching the people walking around them with a small smile on his face. Annie loved calm days, especially after the first month of the tour. She knew that concerning the rest of the tour outside the UK that started in January everything was fine and there were only nine shows left. She pondered if she should take the European part of the tour as well, but she didn’t want everybody to know that she was pregnant.

No one observed her growing belly yet because of the bigger clothes she was wearing during the concerts. Of course that everybody was surprised that she didn’t wear leotards or much fitter outfits, but nobody suspected anything. And even if at first she was a little worried that she would gain weight fast, it didn’t happen. She did start gaining a little, but it was normal and she wasn’t that skinny either so a little more wasn’t noticeable.

While looking around her while walking, her eyes fell on a magazine stand behind a library’s window, one cover catching her attention.

 **‘Recently married Tom Hiddleston spotted leaving a restaurant with Elizabeth Olsen’** written over a photo with Tom and Elizabeth leaving a restaurant. Too bad Annie was also there, as well as the director of the movie they were doing together.

“Why are you cheating on me?” she asked, gently tugging on Tom’s hand, halting him.

The surprised was evident in his blue eyes.

“What?” he asked, frowning, confusion written on his face.

Laughing, Annie pointed with her free hand to the magazine. She saw the amused smile that appeared on his face and she went into a fit of giggles, covering her mouth and stopping herself from being too loud.

“Weren’t those pictures all over the internet for a few days after that?” he laughed as they started walking again.

“Well, apparently Marc and I turned invisible all of a sudden.”

Still laughing, Annie laid her head on his shoulder and he squeezed her hand.

“You know I wouldn’t do that, right?” Tom asked, lifting her hand and kissing the back of it.

Annie just nodded and smiled up at him, happiness obvious on her face. They agreed to spend the Christmas’ Eve at their place and on the 25th to go at Tom’s mum, since her parents were spending their Christmas in a much warmer part of the world. Patricia invited them to come, but Annie was never a big fan of spending the holydays in a strange house or a hotel. She’s had enough of those in the last few years.

She looked up at Tom again, his eyes focused forward. She knew that she fell in love with him, but was too afraid that telling him now would be too soon, which she thought to be a silly fear since she was already pregnant and their marriage became stronger, even after it was reduced to a contract.

Her thoughts wavered around that idea and in no time they were standing in front of their door with Tom fumbling with the keys, trying to unlock it.

“Do you think it is a boy or a girl?” Annie asked, stepping inside and taking off her coat and watching Tom doing the same.

He seemed to be pondering for a few moments and then his gaze met Annie’s.

“I think… It’s a little boy.” He was smiling widely and cupped Annie’s face with both his hands and kissed her.

“Well, I think it’s a girl. My mummy instinct says so.” She said poking him in the ribs.

“We shall see in the morning. It’ll be our little Christmas present.” He kissed her again and hugging her, he gently pushed her backwards, never breaking the kiss.

“What do I get if it’s a boy?” he whispered against her lips, smiling lovingly.

Annie gingerly lifted her arms and hugged him back, allowing him to pull her into his lap after he sat on the floor in front of the tree.

“You get some kisses.” She giggled. “What do I get if it’s a girl?” she gently asked smiling.

“You get some kisses.” He mimicked her answer, sending her into a fit of giggles again.

They looked at the envelope that sat there, almost as if they could see through the paper.

“Do you really want a boy?” Annie asked, turning her eyes to meet his blue ones. “What if it’s indeed a girl?”

Tom could sense the concern in her voice and laughed lowly, kissing her cheek.

“Then we have a little girl.”

He heard her sigh as she rubbed her forehead against the side of his face. As they sat in silence, with arms wrapped around each other, something that Dr. Carter said that morning came back to his mind.

“Darling?” his voice was soft, barely above a whisper.

“Yes?”

“This morning, the doctor said something about the third scare being true. What does it mean?”

He felt her body going stiff and her heart started beating strong enough for him to feel.

“I thought you didn’t catch that.” She mumbled, burying her face in the skin of his neck.

Tom tightened his arms around her and waited for an answer.

“I had two pregnancy scares before this one. One with George a few months after we moved together and one when I was sixteen and… Erm…” she stumbled on her words, not finding the right ones.

She wasn’t ashamed of what happened; she understood that it didn’t happen because of her, but it wasn’t something she liked remembering either and there were very few people that knew about it.

“I… I spent that afternoon at a friend’s after we finished the classes and it was already dark when I headed home. And they were drunk. Mistook ‘no’ for ‘yes’.” She explained. “I was a skinny teenager and they were twice my size.”

She felt Tom’s body stiffen at her words, his fingers instinctively digging into her flesh, pulling her to him until the point where you couldn’t tell where her body ended and his began.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered, moving his head to kiss her forehead. He couldn’t even imagine someone hurting her like that.

“They were put in jail eventually.” She mumbled nuzzling the skin of his neck and planting a soft kiss there.

She didn’t know for how long they stood there, in front of the tree with the colorful lights as the only source of light. Tom’s hand fell around her belly, hers over his, interlacing their fingers and her head on his shoulder. At some point she felt him picking her up and carrying her upstairs. She opened her eyes a little when she set her on her feet.

Rubbing her eyes like a small child, she stood in the middle of the room while he helped her change her clothes. After changing his as well, he joined her under the covers and drew her against his chest.

“I love you, Tom.” She murmured, slowly turning in his arms so their chests were touching.

The three words echoed in Tom’s head, sending little jolts of electricity under his skin.

“I love you, too!” he whispered and kissed her forehead.


	13. Chapter 13

Excitement.

It was coursing throughout her veins, making her entire body buzz. She could feel Tom behind her, her back pressed to his chest and an arm around her waist covering her belly, his breathing steady, meaning he was still asleep.

Biting her lower lip, she thought if she should sneak out of the bed and hurry down the stairs to open the envelope. But there was a second part of her that wanted to wait and open it with Tom. His words from the previous night right before she fell heavily asleep again came back to her.

‘ _I love you, too.’_

She didn’t plan on telling him she loves him yet. But in her sleepy haze, it slipped. But the memory of him saying it back caused another wave of giddiness to run from the top of her head to the tip of the toes.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” his voice was thick with sleep, sending a shiver down her spine.

“I can’t.” she whispered, running her fingers up and down his forearm.

He kissed her neck and turned on his back, throwing her arm over his eyes. Annie could see his lips curving into a smile. She suddenly sat up and gripped his hand, tugging him out of the bed.

“Come on! Let’s go see!” she heard him laughing and followed her down the hall. They both stopped in front of the tree. Annie’s grin was stretched from ear to ear. Her heart was beating wildly against her chest and she could feel his beating as fast as hers since his front was against her back.

Kissing the side of her head, he took a step forward, bending to grab the envelope and holding it up and grinning like crazy.

“Are you ready?” he asked, approaching her once again.

She nodded, lifting herself on her toes and then throwing her arms around his neck.

“Hurry up!” she urged, making him laugh at her impatience.

He would lie if he would say he wasn’t as excited as she was. While almost all of his friends already had kids, he was still waiting, until now at least.

Carefully, he ripped open the envelope. Anxious, she rose on her tiptoes again, trying to read what was written on the paper sideways.

“I told you!” she screamed, jumping up and down clapping and shouting a string of ‘I told you’s. “I knew it! Didn’t I tell you?”

He smiled his usual sweet smile and pulled her into an embrace, lifting her and spinning her slowly.

“When do I get my kisses?” she pouted, gently scratching the back of his head. He rested his forehead against hers, the smile still on his face. Annie could feel his breath hot on her lips.

“You want your kisses, then?” he asked, pulling her impossibly closer, no space left between their bodies.

“Uhum…” she mumbled, trying to reach his mouth only to have him retreating a little, just so she couldn’t reach his lips. “Kiss…” she mumbled again, trying to push his head to her.

He laughed softly again and finally pressed his mouth to her. He almost laughed again when he heard her sigh with relief. His left arm was wrapped around her body and the finger of the other one tangled in her platinum hair. When they finally pulled back, they were both breathless, their chests rising fast. Annie cupped his cheeks and kissed him sweetly, smiling.

“I love you.” He whispered. “It’s funny to think that we started the way it ends for others. Cause people usually start with ‘I love you’s that leads to a wedding and a baby, while we started with a wedding and a baby that brought us to this.”

Annie smiled, brushing his cheekbones with her thumbs. Her eyes were filled with tears that threatened to slide down her face. He bent again, brushing his lips gently against hers.

“I love you.” She whispered, and he kissed her again, his arms sneaking around her tights causing her to jump and wrap her legs around his waist, without breaking the kiss and started walking back up the stairs and towards the bedroom.

“We have to tell your mum.” She said while Tom was lifting her shirt, pulling it over her head, exposing her bare torso to him.

“I really don’t want to talk about my mum now.” He rasped as her hands slid under his shirt. His lips covered hers again after he pulled his shirt and pants off and helping her rid of her pants and underwear.  

“Happy Christmas!” he whispered as their bodies connected, listening to her small gasps.

“Happy Christmas!” she whispered back, lifting her head slightly kissing him again.

***

Holding hands and with big grins on their faces, they slid out of the car and headed straight to Diana’s door, which opened before they even reached for the doorbell.

“Happy Christmas!” both Annie and Tom managed to say before Diana pulled Annie into a tight hug. They talked with her the previous day, informing her that they wrote the gender of the baby on a piece of paper and placed it in an envelope under the tree. So the whole family waited for them to arrive and finally give the good news.

After hugging her son as well, they both entered, being greeted by Tom’s sisters and by Sarah’s daughter who ran down the hall screaming their names. Annie smiled and picked up the little girl, covering her with kisses, making the child giggle and squeal.

Emma hugged her brother and waited until he took their niece from Annie’s arms to hug her.

“I’m really sorry too kind of ruin this, but Emilia came here with her parents and she’s been rather annoying since we told them you’d be here.” Emma whispered, rubbing her hands up and down Annie’s forearms.

“Does she know about the baby?” Annie asked, looking towards the living room door where Tom just disappeared.

“No, unless you plan on telling us the gender while they’re here and they could be, since her father is still sour and blames Tom for his daughter’s moving to Spain.”

“You know, sometimes you have to tell me what happened between them, because he wouldn’t and I don’t want to press.”

Emma nodded and liked arms with her sister-in-law and entered into the living room together. Still smiling, her gaze locked with Emilia’s and she could feel the cold stares of her parents.

Well, talk about an awkward Christmas.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello.

Awkward was not the right word to describe the situation. Squeezed into Tom’s side, with their fingers interlaced on his knee, she was carefully trying to avoid Emilia’s stare, as well as her parents’ full of hate ones.

Diana was chatting, quickly trying to find a new subject. Sarah was sitting straight in her spot next to her husband, seeming ready to bolt at any moment, Emma was watching from a safe distance from the kitchen while speaking on the phone with her fiancé who would get at the small family reunion just before dinner and Sarah’s daughter – Lisa – was currently petting Diana’s dog next to the tree.

The tension was almost palpable. The baby subject would probably be brought up sooner or later and it seemed that Emilia and her parents were in no hurry to leave.

Annie’s fears finally came true as she heard Diana laughing rather loudly at something her guest said and turned her eyes toward the place where Tom and Annie were sitting, speaking quietly with Sarah and Jeremy who were standing across them.

“Well, my Annie will finally grant me my long wish and make me a grandmother again.”

Annie’s eyes widened and she felt Tom’s body tense as Emilia’s became wide. She somehow managed to smile and cover her belly without her realizing it.

“We just found out the gender this morning.” Declared Tom rather proudly, lifting his wife’s hand and kissing it lovingly.

His smile was soft, but he was watching Emilia’s reaction from the corner of his eye, subtly putting his arm around Annie’s body and dragging her even closer to his body.

Diana clapped excitedly, a happy laugh escaping her.

“I’ve waited for you to tell me for quite some time now.” She said in a teasing tone, making everybody smile wider, except three.

Emilia’s father glanced hard at Tom, while her mother coughed, trying to hide her shock. Emilia was staring into the space and both Tom and Jeremy tensed when her father stood from his spot.

“Did you ask us to stay for dinner only to listen to this?” he said with a cold tone, eyeing Diana, whose smile fell. “After everything your son did to Emilia, this is what you want us to be excited about?”

Tom was about to say something, but he was beaten by his mother who stood as well, fixating her old friend with a cold stare.

“What my son did? Is this what your daughter told you? That it was his fault?” Annie momentarily froze. She never heard the sweet older woman speaking like that.

Annie turned her head briefly to watch Tom’s reaction. His jaw was clenched and she had a feeling that she would finally find out what exactly happened between Emilia and him.

“Your daughter left simply because she was selfish enough not to allow Tom a chance to move on with the career he wanted, but instead marry her at twenty-one simply because she wanted that. Did she tell you how she screamed at him the night they broke up because he said that they should wait a few more years before they take that step? Did she tell you that she left him heartbroken when she slammed the door yelling he cared more for his ‘stupid career’ than her? Do you know how he felt when she found out that she left to another country from their common friends?”

Emilia’s father was standing still and it was clear that they interpreted everything from their daughter’s point of view. And Annie could see why Emilia was shocked when she came back only to find him married and having a child on its way.

She loved him and probably she was still in love him, but even if she realized that maybe it’s too late to take their relationship from the beginning once again she was still hoping. Annie could understand why Tom refused to marry her back then. She would have put her career first too, but she knew there were things more important than that and her career was still in full swing.

Also, she understood how confused she must have been when she found him married all of a sudden. And he was now having a family with someone that wasn’t her. But she could understand why Tom didn’t want to marry her when they were younger.

He loved acting and wanted to wait until he would take such a big step. But it was selfish from her part to make him choose between something he wanted and her only because she wanted that.

Annie saw Emilia stiffen and she suddenly stood from the couch, dragging her mother up and started walking towards the front door, red-faced and visibly angry.

“Thank you for a really nice dinner, Diana. I wonder if this is the reason you invited us.” Asked Emilia’s father clenching his hands at his sides.

“I only asked you to stay after you had the guts to show up at my door.” Diana answered with a sour smile.

Emilia’s father grunted and stalked down the hall after his wife and daughter, slamming the front door.

“Talk about awkward holydays.” Said Emma, finally putting her phone away and entering the living room.

Everybody was standing still, various emotions playing on their faces. Trying to lighten up the mood once again, Diana simply laughed without much humor and came to sit next to Annie, putting a hand on her knee.

“Now, sweetheart, do tell us about the next little one.” She smiled, shifting her eyes from Annie to Tom, who let his body relax instantly.

“It’s going to be another niece for you, mum.” Said Tom looking lovingly at Annie.

Diana’s face was lit up by a smile and tightly hugged Annie and Tom at the same time, while the others in the room whispered their congratulations. As soon as Emma’s fiancé arrived, the dinner was set and everything was at peace once again.

Hours later, both Tom and Annie were sprawled in what used to be Tom’s bed before he moved, legs tangled together and big smiles on their faces. While Tom’s eyes were closed, Annie was snuggled into his chest, her eyes still wide open.

Two weeks after the New Year she had to resume the tour for the last nine shows and Tom would come with her. But this wasn’t the reason she couldn’t close her eyes. The thought of having a baby was. It was hard to think about going back after she would give birth. She could still continue her career – she knew Tom would never make her leave all the hard work to the dust, but it was hard for her to imagine leaving her child at home while she would fly to other countries for lengthy periods of time, while Tom would do the same.

Of course she could always take her daughter with her, but when she would have to go to kindergarten and school, she couldn’t just have her around the world and not doing what every other child did. And even if both Diana and Patricia would gladly take care of their niece while Tom and herself were working, she couldn’t imagine staying away.

It was the thought that plagued her for some time now. And she knew that at some point she would have to make a choice.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me forever and I'm really, really sorry. Also, if there are any mistakes or words that I might have used in the wrong place, please point them out.

Smiling for a last time on the stage that night, Annie bowed and slowly walked out of the spotlight, only to tiredly wrap her arms around Tom’s waist, sighing when his hand rubbed her back.

“Room service or restaurant?” she heard Sam’s voice coming from behind her, but she didn’t even turn her head. Instead, she just snuggled closer to Tom and turned her head slightly to the right.

“Room service, cause I think I might pass out at any moment.” The Melbourne concert was the final out of the three Australian shows, followed by a free day and a flight to Tokyo.

They arrived two days earlier than the first show just to have a little time for themselves and to finally meet Tom’s friends – the Hemsworths. Annie had a lovely time and was surprised that no photographer realized that her extra-large clothes were hiding a little baby bump. Both Chris and Elsa were surprised as well, but they congratulated them and were visibly happy for them both – Chris joking about Tom starting to work on being even with the number of kids.

They were both invited at the concerts, but they could only come to the first.

“Do you want me to carry you?” she heard Tom whisper in her ear as he opened the door and they stepped out into the back, smaller parking lot.

“I’m fine.” Annie replied, smiling softly, then she grabbed his hand. “Have you thought about names?”

Tom opened the passenger door of the rented car and waited until she climbed in then ran around it climbing into the driver’s seat.

“I actually have a long list. I thought we should go through it together.” He grinned while starting the car’s engine.

The drive back to the hotel they were staying was quiet, the only noises being the radio and the engine. After they reached the hotel and went back to their room, Annie’s phone started to buzz, making her frown when she saw Sam’s name flashing across the screen. She knew that Sam and part of the dance crew went to eat out at a restaurant near the hotel.

“ _Please tell me you’re sitting on the bed_.” She heard Sam say right when she answered.

“What’s wrong?” Annie was confused by her words, knowing that nothing happened after the show ended a little over an hour before.

“ _There are photos of you and Tom on the beach taken this morning. They found out you’re pregnant._ ” Sam seemed breathless.

“Well, it would’ve been out there sooner or later. We knew this would happen.” She said, watching Tom coming into the room.

“ _I ordered food.”_ He mouthed, taking off his shirt. Annie nodded and smiled, biting her lower lip.

“ _That’s not it. The news broke a few hours ago and I was too busy to stalk the articles posted.”_ Sam explained.

“Wait, I’ll put you on speaker so Tom can hear.”

“ _So I just talked to Luke, he’s the one who told me. Apparently Miller had an interview and he was asked about it.”_

She saw Tom frowning, his left hand grabbing her on top of the bed covers and squeezing her fingers lightly.

_“He said the baby is his and you married Tom to cover the story.”_

“WHAT?!” she screeched, lifting herself on her feet and starting to walk in front of Tom who froze at the words. “It’s a lie. How can he say that?!” she ran her finger through her hair, feeling tears starting to gather in her eyes.

_“I know, darling, but this is a huge mess to clean up. I’ll make some phone calls and you’ll probably have to make a statement or something. I have to go. Luke is calling.”_

Sam ended the call and Annie let the phone drop from her hand, falling on the floor with a small _thud._ She slowly turned to Tom, who was still standing frozen on the spot, their eyes locking.

“It’s a lie, Tom. I swear I wasn’t pregnant. I…” she was interrupted by Tom, who stood suddenly, bending and picking up her phone from the floor.

“Do you still have his number?” he asked. She could feel the anger in his voice and she knew he could barely keep it together. This was worse than what they expected.

When they found out about the pregnancy, they thought that in the moment when people would find out about it, they would just assume that the baby was the reason that they got married and probably accuse her of cheating on George. Now, thanks to her ex-fiancé, the world thought that she married Tom pregnant with George’s child.

“I think it is still there.” She mumbled, lowering her gaze to the floor.

“Stay here, please.” He said, his voice cold, then he left the room, while looking through her phone.

“Fucking hell…” she hissed when the door closed, hitting the nightstand next to the bed then cursing again from the pain. The hit triggered her tears and she finally fell on the bed crying softly into the pillow. She knew he was going to call George and she was aware that he was a skilled liar.

 

***

Annie didn’t know how much time has passed since Tom left the room or for how long she had been sleeping. She woke up startled, her head hurting and her nose bloated from crying. Tom still didn’t return to the bedroom and Annie started to panic. The room was dark, the small amount of light that was coming through the window being the only source of light.

She slowly got out of bed and walked towards the closed door. The food arrived and was untouched, while Tom was sitting on the couch still talking on the phone. She walked up behind him and placed a trembling hand on his shoulder. Tom’s body went rigid for a few seconds, then he slowly turned his head to look up at his wife.

“ _Only a second.”_ He mouthed, lifting his hand to cover hers. “Alright. Thanks, man.” He ended the call and stood from the couch, walking around it. For some strange reason, Annie felt like her feet were glued to the floor and couldn’t move to save her life.  

“I’m an asshole…” Tom whispered, bending slightly and wrapping his long arms around her body. Annie sobbed and she felt the tears starting to slide down he cheeks again, lifting her arms around Tom’s waist and hiding her face into his neck.

“You-You have t-to believe m-me. I-I wasn’t pre-pregnant before… before I met you.” She whispered, her voice almost drowned by sobs. He closed his eyes tightly, feeling her lips move against his skin when she spoke.

“I know. I know, darling.” He said, kissing the side of her head softly.

After he got out of the bedroom, he called George demanding an explanation for the radio interview. When the singer started laughing and spewing things about Annie, he realized that he was certainly lying so he ended the call. But before he had the chance of going back to Annie, Luke called him trying to come up with an appropriate solution to the new drama. Now looking at her, seeing her red eyes from crying broke his heart.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry that I doubted you even for a second.” He whispered again, gathering her as close to his body as possible. They had a few rough days ahead.


	16. Chapter 16

“So, the baby is not George’s?” the interviewer asked, for what seemed to be the tenth time and Annie barely kept herself from rolling her eyes.

She finished the rest of the Asian part of the tour and agreed to announce publicly that everything George declared was only a lie and that she was going to take a break from singing for a while. A break she thought she deserved after working almost non-stop for quite some years.

But like she expected, in the moment the interview started she was asked about who was her baby’s father, making her curse both Tom, who couldn’t be there and George who started all the fuss about the baby being his.

“Of course it is not his.” She finally replied, exasperated, looking pleadingly at the woman seated in front of her. “And I have a feeling about your next two questions so I’m going to answer them now: I did not cheat on George, I wouldn’t go that low, and I didn’t marry Tom because I got pregnant.”

Annie smiled briefly after her reply. It was true after all. The baby happened right after they got married and not before, but her reply seemed rather snappish despite her efforts to be calm about the whole thing.

The woman – whose name she couldn’t remember at the moment – _maybe Kate? –_ smiled back to her.

“Well, that clarifies everything, I guess. But why would George say it’s his?”

Drawing her lips into a straight line, Annie pondered for a minute before answering, trying not to insult her ex and be on the front pages of a magazine with a story like this? 

“I honestly have no idea. After we broke up, the only moment we spoke was the day Tom and I ran into him in front of the restaurant we had our breakfast at.”

 _‘Probably he’s preparing to launch something and he needs the promo.’_ She thought, refraining herself from saying it out loud.

The woman nodded, then looked down at the paper she was holding on which the questions were written.

“If a recall correctly, last month there were some rumors about Tom and Elizabeth Olsen walking out of a restaurant in center London?”

“Oh, I remember that.” Annie laughed, remembering both the evening and the day when they saw the magazines with Tom and Lizzie plastered across their covers. “It’s funny how easily manipulated photos can be these days. Yes, they went out that night. They are both starring in ‘I saw the light’ that will have its premiere in about two months so they simply ate out. And another fun fact? I was there, as well as the movie’s director, Marc Abraham.”

“Oh, I see. And about your marriage to Tom, can you say anything?” she asked, making Annie subtly rise and eyebrow. “I know you refused to answer any question about how it happened so fast.”

Taking a deep breath, Annie smiled pleasantly again.

“I still don’t wish to talk about it. Both Tom and I wish to keep private about this and honestly, I don’t know why our marriage and life are so interesting. If we weren’t working in the spotlight, no one would be interested. I agree that it was a rash, moment decision, but the details are between me, Tom and our families. I cannot understand why this is so much more important than our work.”

“I completely can understand that.” the interviewer said and offered a tiny smile.

‘ _I seriously doubt it._ ’ She thought again.

“I wanted to thank you for clarifying things up a little and for taking your time to have a chat. I know you have something to announce your fans so I’ll leave you to it.”

“Thank you!” Annie said, in a soft voice and drifted her eyes toward the camera. “I just wanted to thank everyone who bought my music and supported me all this time, you guys are amazing. But, as you can guess, things now are a little complicated,” she gestured to her baby bump smiling, “so I believe it’s time for a break. Thank you again for all your support and see you soon.”

She was smiling widely when they closed the camera and she stood from her chair patting her rounded belly. The interviewer thanked her again and they chatted for another few minutes until Luke entered the room, smiling politely.

Amy took a few days off since she was preparing for her sister’s wedding and Luke promised to handle the last public ‘questioning’ Annie was doing for a while.

“I take it went well?” he asked, putting his hand on her back and slowly pushing her towards the exit.

“She’s lucky I didn’t punch her at some point.” She mumbled, looking around her to make sure no one could hear her. “I don’t know what they were expecting me to say, but I swear she asked the same question at least ten times.”

“That bad, huh?” Annie hummed, and put on her sunglasses in the moment they were out, with Luke still guiding her through the sea of paps outside the building.

Once seated in the back seat of the cab, Luke climbed in after her and closed the door.

“She asked about those rumors about Tom and Elizabeth. I thought everyone knew that they were just rumors since we’re still together.” She mumbled again, looking back at Luke who simply shrugged.

“Well, they need something to start rumors again.”

The rest of the drive was spent in silence, giving her a little time to think about the future and she almost groaned when she realized that they still had to decorate the baby’s room and think about a name.

_***_

She was sitting on the couch watching TV and cuddling with Prada when the doorbell rang making her jump slightly and wake the cat, who looked lazily in the direction of the door. Glancing at the clock on the wall and frowning. She was having a déjà vu from the night she opened the door and Emilia walked in. She stood from the couch and walked slowly to open the door, praying that it wasn’t Emilia again. Taking a deep breath, she unlocked it and in a second she was staring in the eyes of her ex-fiancé.

“What the hell are you doing here?” she asked, tightening her grip on the door and stopping him from inviting himself in the house.

“I came to see you.” He shrugged as if it was obvious and Annie felt how the blood started to boil under her skin. “Can I come in? I know he’s not home.”

“You can stay out.” She replied coldly. “And how do you know Tom’s not home? Are spying on us?”

He smirked, rising an eyebrow and bit his lower lip while looking at her from head to toe.

“Come on, babe. We both know why _you_ ’re here. I just came to take you back.” He said, trying to push his way inside again.

“How stupid are you?” Annie asked, grunting as she pushed him back.

“I know that kid,” he said, pointing to her belly, “is mine. You just left me because you know I don’t want kids.”

Annie looked at his face, barely containing her anger.

“Are you stupid or do you have problems with your memory?” she asked, pushing him one more time. “ _I_  haven't left  _you_ , _I_ kicked _you_ out of _my_ house because _you_ were fucking someone else in _my_ bed. Now, please leave.”

She saw him taking a deep breath and gathering his thoughts, after he ran a hand through his hair, a gesture she has seen Tom do plenty of times.

“Annie, I know you’re not actually married to him.”

His statement made her laugh out.

“Do you want to see my ID card and read out loud the name? Just fuck off.” She said, stepping back to close the door.

At the same time, George pushed slightly her, making her head hit the wall and fall to her knees, wincing. She heard him gasp and his hands shot toward her, wrapping around her forearms and pulling her back up. Before he had time to say anything, they heard the car engine stop and Tom getting out of the car, walking furiously.

“Tom…” Annie whimpered, slapping George’s hands away and reaching out to Tom. Grabbing the younger man by his shoulder and pushing him away, Tom turned to his wife currently clinging to his arms and trying to steady herself.

“Can you hear me, darling?” he asked, voice filled with worry.

“A little… dizzy…” she managed to say, finally looking up at Tom.

“I’m really sorry.” They suddenly heard George say. “I didn’t mean to push, I just…”

“You better leave. Now.” Tom hissed through gritted teeth, wrapping an arm around Annie, walking her backwards and pushing the door close behind them. 

After the door was closed, he picked her up and walked to their bedroom, slowly helping her stretch on the bed.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked. Annie could sense his anger.

“He tried to get in the house and pushed me. I hit the wall.” She heard him take a deep breath. “Not hard, but enough to make lose balance.”

“We’re going to the police tomorrow.” He said standing up and taking his shirt off, looking at Annie.

After he took a shower, they both ate and went back to bed, Prada following them and settling next to Tom’s pillow.

 


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. I apologize for the lack of updates, but real life kept me busy for the past months.  
> I'm also sorry for any mistakes in the chapter!

Standing in front of the mirror with her night shirt lifted – like she was doing every morning since her belly was more prominent – Annie sighed happily. Tom was softly snoring, stretched across the bed on his back with his right arm thrown over her side of the bed.

Annie looked at him and smiled, then quietly walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

A few hours later, Annie was sprawled on the couch watching T.V., Prada sleeping soundly next to her feet. Rubbing his eyes, Tom looked over his wife’s body, his gaze stopping on her round belly. He was holding the blue folder in which they kept the contract they signed.

Annie’s eyes moved from the folder to his face, her own face holding no emotion.

“Do you want an early divorce?” she said, pointing to the folder with the remote. “Cause I’m keeping the cat and I’m demanding a shared custody over my little princess.” She said, rubbing her belly with her left hand.

The serious look on her face made Tom laugh as he dropped the folder on the coffee table in front of the couch.

“No divorce, but that contract is a delicate matter, we need to discuss sooner or later. And I’d rather have the talk as soon as possible.” He said, smiling softly.

Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand, Annie scooted even more into the back of the couch and yawned.

“Come snuggle with me.” She whispered, lightly kicking the cat without meaning. Prada raised her furry head, startled then got up to stretch as Tom lied down next to his wife, pushing one arm under her to hug her.

Meowing, Prada climbed over their intertwined legs only to slither herself between their tights. Annie giggled and stretched her hand to scratch the cat’s head lightly, then returned it back to Tom’s chest.

“What was it about that contract?” she asked, looking her husband in the eye.

Tom smiled and brushed the blonde hairs back from Annie’s eyes. He seemed to think about something for a few seconds, trying to find the right words to express his feelings.

“I was thinking about ending the contract.” He finally said, worry flashing through his blue eyes for a second. 

Annie frowned and bit her lower lip.

“As in a divorce?”

“Why do you keep talking about the damn divorce?” Tom asked in a louder voice.

“A divorce is a way of ending it.” Annie said, biting her lip again.

“Do you want a divorce?” he asked, serious. He put a little distance between them so he could look her in the eye.

“No, but you’re the one talking about ending the contract!” she said slapping his chest and huffing.

“There are other ways to end something.” He said hugging her against his body, his hand joining hers on her belly. “We can talk to Luke and Amy and they’ll know what to do. I just wanted to know if you wanted.”

“You could’ve said that from the start.” His wife said, her voice muffled. “I thought you wanted to get rid of us.”  She added in a whisper, motioning to the cat.

Tom chuckled and kissed the top of her head. It wasn’t long until they fell asleep hugging each other closely, with Prada between them.

                                                                       ***

Taking a deep breath, Annie patted her belly again while walking around the house while holding Prada. She had a feeling that the cat was actually enjoying being walked around because she wouldn’t stop purring.

Tom just left to buy some more cat food and milk, leaving her again with the cat only. She almost screamed when the doorbell rang. Pressing a hand to her chest, she let the cat on the floor and quickly walked to the front door to open it only to come face to face with Emilia. Suddenly she had flashbacks from the last night she saw her at Diana’s.

“Tom’s not at home.” Annie said, skipping the normal formalities. “You can come later and talk to him if you want.”

“I wanted to talk to you.” Emilia said, looking at Annie with wide eyes. She could see the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes and she suddenly thought that she is not the only one with a meddling ex.

Thinking for a few seconds, she opened the door more and stepped out of the way, gesturing for the woman to get inside.

“I’m listening.” She said simply, crossing her arms on her chest and waiting to hear what Emilia had to say.

“I… I don’t even know how to start.” She stumbled for the first seconds. “I… I wanted to ask you if… if you could… if you could leave him…”

Annie’s eyes opened wide when she heard her talk.

“Pardon?” for a few moments she thought she didn’t hear correctly.

“I love him, Annie. And I know that deep down he still feels something for me. If maybe you won’t be around, he’ll realize it… Please… I just… I love him. So much it hurts me. And I know that I did wrong when I left him but now I’m back and I can give him the life he wants.”

Annie raised one eyebrow, watching the older woman intently, almost expecting her to start laughing at any moment. When Emilia started crying, she realized she was being serious.

“Ok, listen. I can understand that you still love him, but do you even realize what exactly you are asking?” she shook her head a little, then started rubbing her temples lightly. “You’re asking me to remove myself and our unborn kid from his life for you to simply take him back like a long-lost property? You’ve made your choices long ago, ma’am.”

“I… please try to understand me…”

“I don’t even know why exactly I’m still listening to you. Just get out of my house.” She said pointing back to the door.

“Annie, I beg you!”

“Do you really want me to pity you after what you asked me to do? Have you got no decency in your body? Get out while I’m still asking nicely.”

Watching Emilia turning her back and opening the door, Annie asked herself if she was going to be left alone by George and Emilia.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to squeeze another quick one. There are two chapters left, but I can't make promises when I'll update next cause I have an extremely busy week.

“Are you sure you don’t want to press charges for physical assault?” Tom asked as they were walking out of the police station.

“Yes. He was just stupid to come at our house probably a little drunk. Otherwise, he’s harmless and the restraint order is going to keep him away. And I don’t think it was his intention to push me. Just to make his way inside.” Annie’s voice was a lot calmer than what was going on inside her head. She hated police stations with a passion since she was a kid without any particular reason, but at the same time she couldn’t risk her safety and knowing George watched their house enough to know Tom wasn’t home was the reason she was scared that maybe one day Tom won’t be there and he would actually push his way inside the house intentionally.

Tom grunted and placed his hand on the back of his wife and led her thought the parking lot towards their car. During the last few days he was a bit tenser, with what happened with both George and Emilia so he would leave Annie alone only if absolutely necessary and was reluctant to actually let her go by herself out.

“And are you absolutely sure you don’t want to do something about Emilia as well?” he asked after getting in the car and watched Annie buckle her seatbelt in place.

“Like what? Buy her a ticket to see a psychiatrist?” she said raising her eyebrows. “She didn’t exactly do anything to me. She just asked me to leave you. And trust me when I say this: it takes a lot more than some crazy chick to get rid of me.”

Tom chuckled and started the car’s engine. It was a busy day for both of them, starting with the morning monthly doctor appointment to see their little princess, followed by a long talk with Amy and Luke about the contract they signed the day after their wedding and then stopping at the section for the restraint order.

Annie turned her gaze on Tom while he was driving towards his mum’s house. She could easily see why Emilia loved him. God knew she love just as much, if not more, but if she were in Emilia’s place, she wouldn’t have the courage to go to Tom’s wife to beg her to leave him for her own selfish wishes. She would’ve left him to be happy.

He was extremely displeased to hear what happened after he left and was feeling bad because he wasn’t there to spare Annie from listening.

‘ _Maybe I’m also selfish for not being able to walk away, but I love Tom as well. How can I just leave him now after the mayhem we caused in our lives?’_

The same thought ran through her mind the whole way to Diana’s house, distracting her from everything that was happening around her. The traffic turned into a blur and the loud noise of the crowded city became a constant buzz in her ears.

‘ _I love him. I just can’t pack my bag and erase myself from his life. It wouldn’t be fair for neither of us. So I’ll continue to be selfish in this aspect.’_

“Are you alright, darling?” Tom’s worried voice was what pulled her from her thoughts, remembering the present and that he’ll probably always be there no matter what would happen to them.

“Just thinking.” She replied, her own voice betraying the tiredness she felt.

The previous night she couldn’t sleep, spending almost the whole night thinking about how much her life changed since the night she returned from Japan. She went from being happily engaged to someone she thought she would spend the rest of her whole life with to being completely heartbroken to being married to someone she never even thought she would meet in person and then to find out she was expecting a child.

A child that was coming into the world in about four months and despite wanting to be a mother, the thought was scaring her simply because she felt that she was way too young and stupid to have a child.

She didn’t even realized when Tom parked in front of Diana’s home and got out of the car, walking quickly around if to open Annie’s door and help her out.

At some point of her life, she would’ve been annoyed if someone would insist on always opening doors for her or helping her do something so trivial, but now she secretly loved having Tom’s undivided attention. His constant presence was soothing, his warm personality wrapping around her, almost protecting her from everything else.

Wrapping an arm around her waist and resting his hand on her belly, they slowly walked towards the door.

                                   ***

Stretched on her back, Annie had her eyes fixed on the ceiling and her hands rubbing her swollen stomach like she kept doing since it grew bigger. Tom opened the bathroom door, turning the lights off behind him and walked across the room to join his wife in bed.

After pulling the soft blanket to cover them both, almost immediately Annie moved from her spot to come as close as possible to him, resting her head on his chest as his arms went around  her body.

“What are you thinking?” he asked, kissing the top of her head, then nuzzling the spot with his cheek.

“About our little princess. Have you thought about a name yet?” she asked quietly, listening to Tom’s steady heartbeat. She could hear him taking a deep breath before answering.

“Actually I was hoping you came out with a name.”

“Darling, my dad got me a cat for my fourteenth birthday and I named it Garbage because I panicked when he asked me about a name. And I named the cat you brought me Prada because it was the first word that came to me. Do you really want me to name a child?”

Tom laughed and started stroking her back.

“Well, we still have some months to choose wisely.”

Annie slowly raised her head to look him in the eye and bit her lower lip.

“You know? One day you’re going to bite of that lip if you continue to do that every time something worries you.”

He bent his head to drop a quick kiss on her lips. Annie smiled at the tender gesture, then kissed his neck.

“I’m scared.” She mumbled quietly.

And he knew she wasn’t talking about George watching them or Emilia return at their door. It was the same fear that sometimes clenched his heart: becoming parents.

“I know.” He replied, tightening his hold on her and bending his head again to kiss every part of her face he could reach. “We’ll be fine.”


End file.
